Iran-backed paramilitary groups respond to the US with further attacks

2023-11-10 07:13:09, Kosova & Bota CNA

Iran-backed militias do not appear to be backing down despite a US airstrike believed to have destroyed an important weapons depot in eastern Syria.

The Pentagon on Thursday hailed as successful the airstrike carried out late Wednesday by two F-15 fighter jets, which also caused successive explosions at the weapons depot. But US officials also acknowledged that, at least for now, there has been no slowing of attacks by Iranian-backed militias against US forces in the region.

A US official told VOA on Thursday that after the US airstrike, Iranian-backed militias launched four drone and missile attacks on US forces and bases – three of them in Syria and one in Iraq.

One of the attacks was carried out late Wednesday against a US facility in the safe zone in Syria and injured three servicemen.

Officials said two of the injured were diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries, but that none of the injuries were serious and that all three were returned to duty.

The officials also said that none of the drone and missile strikes caused any damage to US infrastructure.

"These strikes have been generally unsuccessful," Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh told reporters Thursday.

"Fortunately, none of our soldiers were seriously injured, nor was the infrastructure in the bases that were targeted; we did not suffer significant damage", she added.

US bases and facilities have been attacked at least 46 times since Iranian-backed militias began attacking US forces in Iraq and Syria last month in a show of support for Hamas in its war against Israel.

Since October 17, a total of 56 US service members have been injured, with 25 diagnosed with traumatic brain injury as a result of missile or drone blasts. However, the Pentagon said all injuries were minor and that all injured servicemen have returned to duty.

Pentagon officials also note that most of the injuries were caused before the United States launched its first self-defense strikes on Oct. 26, against two weapons depots in Syria used by Iran-backed groups.

Wednesday's attack was on a major weapons storage facility in Syria's Deir el-Zour province belonging to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). US officials say the missiles and other materials used to launch attacks on US forces were taken from this facility by some of the Iran-linked groups.

Pentagon officials expressed optimism Thursday that the operation will have the intended effect.

"We know there were secondary explosions. We know the facility was significantly damaged," Ms Singh said. "We feel confident that we were able to degrade their capabilities."

"We will not hesitate to take further measures necessary to protect our people and to do so at a time and place of our choosing," she added.

The Pentagon also officially confirmed on Thursday that Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen managed to shoot down a US drone flying over the Red Sea.

Ms Singh told reporters that there were indications that the US MQ-9 drone fell into the water and that the Houthis tried to retrieve it before it sank.

"We know there was an attempt by the Houthis to get the MQ-9 drone, but it's unlikely they'll get anything significant," she said. "We [the US] are not trying to take it either."

In recent weeks, the United States has bolstered its military presence in the Middle East, sending two aircraft carrier battle groups, dozens of fighter jets and a ballistic missile submarine to the region to discourage an escalation of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. from Iran and the groups that this country supports./ VOA