#attacks #Syria #target #Iranbacked #forces #Biden
US President Joe Biden said Thursday that US air and artillery strikes, which killed four militants in eastern Syria, were ordered to protect US forces from attacks by Iran-backed militias.
“I directed the August 23 strikes to protect and defend the safety of our personnel… and to prevent the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iran-backed militias from carrying out or supporting further attacks on United States personnel and facilities.” , Biden said in a statement notifying Congress of the action.
He said the US strikes, the heaviest action by US forces in the region in many months, came in response to a series of missile attacks on US and partner force installations in the region, including two on the al-Tanf garrison and the mission support site Green Village on August 15.
Biden said the retaliatory strikes, which involved Apache attack helicopters, AC-130 attack helicopters and M777 artillery, targeted a facility used by the attackers for logistics and ammunition storage.
The first US strikes took place on Tuesday. But after Iran-allied fighters fired a fresh barrage on US positions on Wednesday, a stronger force of American planes flew in to strike back.
A total of four militia fighters were killed and seven rocket launchers destroyed, the US Central Command, which oversees operations in the Middle East, said in a statement.
Three US soldiers were slightly injured in the shelling on Wednesday.
“We made a concerted decision … to provide an appropriate response here from a deterrence standpoint,” said Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder.
The strikes ended early Thursday.
“We no longer have any troops in contact. We believe this latest round of escalation is over,” a US official said, for the sake of anonymity.
The fighting took place in Deir Ezzor, a strategic, oil-rich province bordering Iraq.
The area east of the Euphrates is dominated by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, United States allies and other coalition partners who maintain a mission against what remains of the jihadist group Islamic State.
Tehran has denied US claims that it was behind militia attacks on American garrisons in Syria.
It is said that there is only one Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps positioned in Syria as a “military adviser” with forces loyal to the regime.
But Iraq’s Kataeb Hezbollah, a pro-Iranian group operating under the umbrella of the Hashed al-Shaabi militia network, is involved in Syria, as are Iraq’s Imam Ali Brigades and Sayyed al-Shuhada Brigades.
All three are close to the Revolutionary Guards.
The flare-up of attacks and counterattacks came just as the United States and Iran neared a possible deal to restore the 2015 nuclear deal, which could see the West ease sanctions on Tehran over renewed tightening of its restrictions committed to the nuclear program.
US officials say the fighting in Syria is not linked to the European Union-brokered nuclear talks in Vienna.
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