The overnight Pentagon airstrikes on alleged Iran-back militia targets in Syria’s east has already been met with retaliation attacks. The US strikes marked the second major such aerial operation in Syria in recent weeks since the Gaza war began.
“American troops were hit four times by Iranian-backed groups in the Middle East after a U.S. strike Wednesday on an Iranian facility in Syria,” The Hill reports based on fresh defense official statements.
Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh in a Thursday briefing filled in more details on the continuing tit-for-tat as US troops are in the line of fire while occupying some one-third of Syrian territory.
She indicated that in 56 American soldiers were wounded in more than 46 attacks against US bases in Iraq and Syria in the period of time spanning Oct. 17 to Nov. 9
One of the Wednesday US strikes was reportedly against an “IRGC-linked weapons storage facility” – and Singh said it was ‘successful’ as “we were able to render that building pretty much non-usable.” She described that the prior attacks on US bases have all involved rockets and suicide drones, which in total has been 24 attacks in Iraq and 22 in Syria.
“If these attacks continue against our personnel, we won’t hesitate at a time and place of our choosing to respond again,” Singh added.
Defense officials have further said that all or most of the over 50 US troop injuries have been minor, and that all have since returned to duty.
Below: an initial round of US strikes in late October:
The US has had some 1,000 or more troops and personnel in Syria for years. Originally claiming a “counter ISIS” mission, the US “mission” quickly became an oil and gas resource grab – ultimately with an eye toward regime change in Damascus, via suffocating sanctions and diverting of domestic energy.
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