The US military attacked two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday.
(Be sure to read: Does Israel’s ‘selective’ incursion in Gaza prepare the ground for a ground offensive?).
“Self-defense precision strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against US personnel in Iraq and
Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups which began on October 17,” he said in a statement.
The attacks come after the Pentagon confirmed that At least 21 US soldiers have suffered minor injuries in several drone attacks by pro-Iran militias in Iraq and Syria since October 17.
Additionally, a civilian contractor employed by the United States died of a heart attack while sheltering from pro-Iran attacks, Austin said.
(Also: Israel claims it murdered the mastermind of Hamas attacks on October 7).
The Pentagon did not offer any further details on possible casualties from its strikes in eastern Syria this Thursday, which he defined as precision bombings in self-defense, But he assured that he does not seek conflict nor does he have “the intention or desire to participate in more hostilities,” Austin said.
Still, he warned: “If attacks by Iran’s subsidiaries against US forces continue, we will not hesitate to take the necessary measures to protect our people.”
The secretary also made it clear that These attacks are not related to the US response to the conflict between Israel and Hamas, and called on all countries to avoid taking measures that could contribute to the war spreading to other regions
US forces in Iraq and Syria suffered 16 attacks this month
U.S. and allied forces in Iraq and Syria have been attacked at least 16 times this month, it said Thursday. the United States Department of Defense, accusing “Iran-backed militia groups.”
The latest attack took place on Thursday in the autonomous region of Kurdistan, in northern Iraq, and did not cause “any casualties”, although it did cause “some minor damage to infrastructure”, Pentagon spokesman General Brigadier Pat Ryder.
(You can read: ‘The Israeli occupation suffocates Palestine in every sense’: Palestinian ambassador).
Since Oct. 17, “US and coalition forces have been attacked at least 12 separate times in Iraq (and) four separate times in Syria,” Ryder said, alluding to the international coalition against the Islamic State jihadist group.
The operations were carried out with “a combination of one-way attack drones and rockets,” he said.
“We know that these are militia groups backed by Iran and of course we hold Iran responsible for these groups,” declared Ryder regarding the authors of the actions.
The United States has about 2,500 soldiers in Iraq and around 900 in
Syria. Attacks against US forces in the Middle East have increased in the context of new clashes between Israel and the Palestinian organization Hamas, which began on October 7.
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With information from AFP and EFE
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