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The Pentagon is seen from the air on March 3, 2022.
CNN –
According to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the United States carried out another series of strikes against targets in eastern Syria linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, following sustained attacks on US forces in the region.
Austin said the attacks were directed by President Joe Biden and targeted a training facility and a safe house near the towns of Abu Kamal and Mayadin, respectively.
A defense official confirmed on Sunday that militias linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) were present at the facilities hit by US airstrikes earlier that day. The official said it was unclear, however, how many — if any — of those employees were killed.
“Initial evaluations of the attacks indicate that US forces have successfully destroyed the intended facilities. “In addition, we can confirm the presence of IRGC-linked militia personnel, but cannot provide casualty figures at this time,” the official said.
The attacks, which took place late Sunday evening local time, mark the third time in three weeks that the US has attacked targets in the region, as it blamed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for repeated missile and drone fires against facilities housing US troops blame Iraq and Syria.
In total, there have been at least 46 attacks on US forces in Iraq and Syria since October 17, in which at least 56 soldiers were injured. Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh said Thursday the injuries were a combination of traumatic brain injuries and minor injuries.
“The President has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he ordered today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests,” Austin said in the statement.
On Wednesday, two US F-15 fighter jets hit a weapons depot in eastern Syria. The Pentagon described this as a “precision self-defense attack.” Region.
A senior military official said the facility was believed to have housed weapons used in “many airstrikes against our forces here in the region.”
And on October 26, the US carried out airstrikes against two facilities in eastern Syria linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and affiliated groups. The attacks were directed against a weapons depot and an ammunition depot.
The U.S. has sought to send a message of deterrence to Iran through the attacks and military presence in the region, including two aircraft carrier strike groups and an amphibious readiness group, as well as additional air defense systems deployed to the Middle East.
But attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria continue, even as the U.S. has tried to separate the conflict in Gaza from the rest of the region.