We've been getting reports that the US has carried out airstrikes in Iraq and Syria. It's in response to Sunday's drone attack on a US military base that killed three soldiers. Let's go straight to our senior international correspondent, Ola Gearan, who's in Northern Iraq at tonight. Ola, what do we know?

Well, America's retaliation is underway, Jane. We know that 85 targets have been struck in Syria and here in Iraq. American bombers have been flying long-range missions from the United States. We're told that they have targeted command and control centers associated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards and with Allied Iranian militias. Now, the region has been on a countdown, Jane, since last Sunday since those American troops were killed. President Biden has been trying, if you like, to square a circle to come up with a response that is strong enough to satisfy public opinion in the United States in an election year, strong enough to satisfy Republican pressure, but not so strong that it triggers a much harsher reaction from Iran or from any of these proxy militias. Now, that is a very difficult balance to strike. We don't yet have any reports about the casualties, the numbers of people killed, or the damage that has been inflicted by these strikes tonight. The Americans have said it will be a multi-tiered response. It could be several locations over several days. We've been told that the first thing we see will not be the last thing we see, so this action will continue.

The US Secretary of State, Lloyd Austin, has said there is a way to manage this so that things do not escalate out of control. Well, now we will see if that is actually the case. The Middle East is a Tinder box at the moment. This is a new and dangerous moment. But the Iranian leader himself, Ibrahim Raïsi, said today that Iran did not want to start a war, but that if anybody tried to pressure it or bully it, there would be a strong response. So Whitehouse and Tehran saying the same thing. They don't want a major escalation, but it's unclear if the situation will be contained.