U.S. fighter jets on Wednesday struck Iran-backed militias in eastern Syria, the Pentagon said, the second such American strike against Iran-linked groups over the past two weeks as fears of escalation mount in the Middle East.
In a statement, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said President Biden ordered the “self-defense strike” by U.S. F-15s against a weapons storage facility in Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and affiliated groups. Such militias are responsible for a string of recent attacks against American troops stationed in Iraq and Syria, the Pentagon said.
Attacks against U.S. forces in the region have increased dramatically in the month since the militant group Hamas launched its Oct. 7 terrorist attack against Israel. Iran and its proxies have celebrated that attack, and President Biden has dispatched warships, troops and other assets to the region to warn Iran and its anti-Israel allies not to try to exploit the situation.
“This precision self-defense strike is a response to a series of attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria by IRGC-Quds Force affiliates. The president has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he directed today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests,” Mr. Austin said. “The United States is fully prepared to take further necessary measures to protect our people and our facilities. We urge against any escalation. U.S. personnel will continue to conduct counter-ISIS missions in Iraq and Syria.”
The strikes against Iran-linked targets in Syria came on the same day that Iran-backed Houthi forces shot down a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reaper drone operating in international airspace off the coast of Yemen, a defense official confirmed. The Houthi rebels have aligned themselves with Hamas in its war against Israel, launching missile and drone attacks that so far have been thwarted.
The Pentagon did not name the militias targeted in Wednesday’s strikes in Syria, but the groups Kata’ib Hezbollah and Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada have over the past few years been responsible for many of the attacks against American forces in the region.
A string of attacks last month by Iran-linked militias wounded 21 U.S. service members and led to one American contractor dying from a cardiac incident while sheltering in place.
• Staff writer Mike Glenn contributed to this report.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.
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