In reaction to drone assaults on US personnel in Iraq, the US says it has carried out airstrikes in Iraq and Syria border against Iran-backed militias.
The strikes targeted “operational and weapons storage facilities” at three locations, according to a Pentagon spokeswoman.
He stated that President Biden had made it plain that he will act to protect US personnel. The Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), a major Iraqi militia coalition, reported four members of one faction were slain and promised retaliation.
President Biden’s weekend airstrikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria are rankling Democrats frustrated by his decision to sidestep Congress https://t.co/8xUkM0TN2J
— POLITICO (@politico) June 28, 2021
Around 2,500 US troops are stationed in Iraq as part of a worldwide coalition assisting Iraqi security forces in their fight against the Islamic State (IS). According to US authorities, there have been at least five drone assaults targeting facilities they utilize since April. They are also regularly targeted with rockets.
What has been Iraq’s response to the United States and its allies?
The strikes, according to Iraq’s military, were a flagrant violation of Iraqi sovereignty.
General YehiaRasool, a military spokeswoman, tweeted: We strongly condemn the US airstrike on a point near the Iraqi-Syrian border yesterday night, which is a flagrant and unacceptable violation of Iraqi sovereignty and national security.”
Iraq’s “refusal to be an arena for settling scores” was underlined, and he pleaded for calm. The strikes were also denounced by Iran. Saeed Khatibzadeh, a spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told reporters in Tehran that the US should avoid taking emotional actions that cause crises and tensions, as well as compounding issues for people in the region.
According to Syrian official television, a kid was killed in an airstrikes in Iraq and Syria border, and the US is attempting to sabotage attempts to enhance regional stability.
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The “defensive precision airstrikes” that took place early Monday were meant to “disrupt and discourage” further drone attacks on US forces in Iraq, according to PentaIranian military ship attacked by Israelgon spokesperson John Kirby.
What did the US intend to accomplish?
The facilities were utilized by various Iran-backed factions, including Kataib Hezbollah and KataibSayyid al-Shuhada, and were located in two locations in Syria and one in Iraq, according to the Pentagon.
The strikes, which were the second round targeting Iran-backed militias since President Biden took office in January, were carried out by US Air Force F-15s and F-16s using satellite-guided weapons, according to US media.
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Mr Kirby stated, “The United States took necessary, appropriate, and deliberate action to limit the potential of escalation while simultaneously sending a clear and unequivocal deterrence message.”
Since 2009, the US has labelled Kataib Hezbollah as a foreign terrorist organization, accusing it of carrying out many assaults against US forces in Iraq. Its leader, Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, was assassinated in a US drone attack in Baghdad last year, along with top Iranian general QasemSoleimani.
In late February, US airstrikes in eastern Syria targeted Kataib Hezbollah and KataibSayyid al-Shuhada in retaliation for a rocket attack on a US-led coalition airbase in Irbil that killed one Filipino civilian contractor.