US Hits Targets In Iraq and Syria In Retaliation To Jhordan Attack By Alleged Iran-Backed Militia
After a deadly drone attack on the US’s Jordan military base known as Tower 22 near the Jordan-Syria border by alleged Iran-backed militia, the US on Friday retaliated by launching a series of air strikes against the militia group in Iraq and Syria.
US President Joe Biden yesterday announced that the military struck targets at facilities in Iran and Syria. “At my direction, US military forces struck targets at facilities in Iraq and Syria that the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps) and affiliated militia use to attack US forces,” US President Joe Biden said in a statement.
According to the US Central Command (CENTCOM), the military forces struck more than 85 targets in the two countries with many long-range bombers flown directly from the US.
America had blamed the Iran-backed group for the drone attack on its military base in Jordan last Sunday, killing 3 US soldiers and wounding around 40 others. The US had then vowed revenge for the attack and many feared it would further escalate the situation, leading to a direct attack between the two countries.
However, the US president further stated that the attack will continue at times and places of the US’s choosing “Our response began today. It will continue at times and places of our choosing.” Mr Biden further said that the US does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. “But let all those who might seek to do us harm know this: If you harm an American, we will respond,” added the President.
The CENTCOM clarified that the strike used more than 125 precision munitions, noting that its targets included command and control and intelligence centres as well as rocket, missile and drone storage facilities belonging to militia groups and Iranian forces.
However, amid the US Republicans” continued demand for a direct attack on Iranian territory, many analyse the US will continue to target Iranian-backed groups in Iraq and Syria. Syrian state media on Friday announced that American aggression on many sites in Syria and the Syrian-Iraqi border has resulted in injuries and casualties, while Iraqi security forces said that six strikes hit many locations in Iraq. “These airstrikes constitute a violation of Iraqi sovereignty and pose a threat that could lead Iraq and the region into dire consequences,” an Iraqi military spokesperson said, Al Jazeera reported.
Since the Israeli aggression in Gaza, Iran”s proxies including Yemen”s Houthis have been engaged in conflict with Israeli and US forces in what they say as an attempt to stop the war in Palestine. The US and UK had conducted a strike in Yemen to prevent the Houthis from attacking ships in the Red Sea, but the group says it still targets ships linked to Israel, the US and the UK.
