SAVANNAH, Ga. () — A Georgia Southern assistant professor of political science talked with following Iran’s retaliation efforts on Monday.

Qatar confirms that all missiles were intercepted and there are no reported casualties. The situation escalated quickly Monday as Iran responded to the U.S. bombing of three nuclear sites over the weekend.

There’s growing concern that the retaliation could mark the beginning of a broader conflict in the Gulf.

“I think most analysts know that Tehran knows that it really couldn’t win a conflict outright between the U.S. and Israel,” Assistant Professor Kimberly Martin Tecklenburg said. “It might end up as a more drawn out, smaller scale type war of attrition conflict, which Donald Trump has said that he would like to avoid as much as possible.”

According to Tecklenburg, the U.S. also has military presence in other countries throughout the region, such as Iraq and Yemen. Those bases could be next, she told .

When asked if military personnel based in the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry would join the already 40,000 American troops there, Tecklenburg said it’s dependent on Iran’s next moves.

“Just having those military installations abroad makes a difference,” Tecklenburg said. “If this does rise to the point where the president and even congress decides to take military action, then that obviously would have a very direct impact on the folks that live in this area.”

Iran could also threaten the global market in retaliation by closing the Strait of Hormuz, according to Tecklenburg. A large portion of the world economy relies on oil from that region.

A closure could mean higher oil prices which could lead to pain at the gas pump.

“On one hand it would be a good thing for the United States, because there would be more demand for our own oil exports,” Tecklenburg said. “But on the other hand, it would be a bad thing for everyone because scarcity around the world could then lead to inflation, which could then become a big part of our every day as well.”