United States military forces launched retaliatory airstrikes on bases in Iraq and Syria.
On Wednesday, the U.S. ignited airstrikes against a weapons facility in Syria in retaliation for dozens of attacks against U.S. bases over the past several weeks.
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U.S. troops in the Middle East have been attacked at least 42 times since mid-October, with two new attacks happening in the last 24 hours. A U.S. defense official has confirmed the developments to Fox News on Wednesday. The recent attacks on U.S. bases began on October 17th, amid turmoil in the Middle East from the Israel-Hamas war. American troops in Iraq and Syria have been repeatedly attacked by groups likely backed by Iran. Militants have been firing one-way drones and rockets. The official explained that the newest attacks did not injure personnel or damage infrastructure. One of the incidents occurred at the al-Shaddadi base in Syria, while the other happened in Iraq.
Following the airstrikes, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III claimed President Joe Biden has nothing but the U.S.’ best interest in mind.
“Today, at President Biden’s direction, U.S. military forces conducted a self-defense strike on a facility in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups," his statement read. "Two U.S. F-15s conducted this strike against a weapons storage facility. 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.”
This comes after Iranian-backed Houthis shot down a US MQ-9 Reaper drone near the Yemeni coast earlier in the day.
The $30 million Reaper drone was reportedly surveilling Yemen when a Houthi militia fired at it.
The last time this happened was in 2019, and in 2021, the Biden administration removed the Houthis from the US list of terrorist groups.