Retaliatory strikes: US carries out airstrikes on Iran-backed militias in Syria Fridays for Future accuses media of manipulating anti-Israel messages

The US carried out airstrikes in eastern Syria on Friday morning in response to attacks by pro-Iranian militias. The US Defense Department in Washington announced late Thursday evening (local time) that the targets were two facilities used by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and their allies.

The Pentagon emphasized that the attacks were an act of self-defense to protect American personnel and had nothing to do with the current conflict between Israel and the Islamist-Palestinian organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip. “The US does not seek conflict (…), but these attacks on the US military, backed by Iran, are unacceptable and must stop,” the statement continued.

Attacks on US bases

Iran-backed groups in Syria and Iraq have been using drones and missiles to attack bases used by the US military since October 17, according to the Pentagon. In one case, a U.S. citizen suffered a heart attack and died during a shelling. 21 other Americans were slightly injured, but have already returned to work. According to the Pentagon, further measures will also be taken in the event of future attacks. The American think tank Washington Institute counted a total of eighteen attacks on Thursday, eleven of which were in Iraq.

The security situation throughout the region is tense due to the Gaza war, which began with Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7. To deter, the US has, among other things, moved additional weapon systems, warships and air force squadrons to the eastern Mediterranean and sent approximately 900 soldiers to the Middle East to support US units there. The Islamist Hamas, which rules in the Gaza Strip, is part of a number of militant groups that are supported by Iran in the region, including with weapons and financially. (saw/sda/dpa)