Response has started. The US military retaliated in Iraq and Syria on Friday after three US soldiers were killed in Jordan in an attack blamed by Washington on Iran-backed groups. The intervention lasted about thirty minutes and was a “success,” said the White House, which reaffirmed that it does not want “war” with Iran.
The Pentagon said numerous combat aircraft, including long-range bombers, were mobilized in the operation. A total of 85 targets were hit at seven different locations (three in Iraq and four in Syria), White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.
The Pentagon said the American operation targeted command and intelligence centers as well as drone and missile storage infrastructure, “which enabled attacks against American and coalition forces.”
“We do not want to see another attack on American positions or military personnel in the region,” White House spokesman John Kirby said. “Our response began today. It will continue as scheduled and in the locations we decide,” Joe Biden also hinted.
18 dead in Syria
At least 18 pro-Iran fighters have been killed in eastern Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH). Security sources also confirmed AFP bombing positions of pro-Iranian armed groups in western Iraq near Syria.
The White House confirmed that the United States had “warned the Iraqi government before the strike”. The latter criticized the “violation of Iraqi sovereignty”. The strikes pose the threat of “catastrophic consequences for the security and stability of Iraq and the region,” condemned the Iraqi prime minister’s military spokesman in a press release.
165 drone strikes against American forces
Since mid-October, more than 165 drone strikes and rocket attacks have targeted American forces deployed with the international anti-jihadist coalition in Iraq and Syria, but no American service members were killed until Sunday’s attack in Jordan.
“The United States does not want conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let those who seek to harm us know this well: If you touch an American, we will respond,” the American president further indicated in a press release.
The American executive has previously indicated that the retaliation will be multiple and spread over time against different targets. Joe Biden, campaigning for a second term, was under intense pressure to respond to the deaths of three American soldiers.
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