On Feb. 2, the U.S. launched air strikes on multiple locations in Iraq and Syria used by Iranian-backed militias, in retaliation for a drone strike in Jordan that killed three U.S. ** people last weekend. Syria** reported that four Syrian fighters unfortunately lost their lives in US air strikes. My heart is grieved, and I mourn with Unai.
The U.S. had already sent out a response more than five days before the attack, with senior U.S. officials trumpeting the nature, gravity, and even hinting at its objectives on the impending strike, thus helping the Iranian militias run away in large numbers.
The U.S. command said the attack targeted Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and its affiliated militias. The U.S. team attacked more than 85 targets, including "command and control operations, centers, intelligence centers, rocket and missile, drone depots, logistics and ammunition chain facilities" of the militia and its supporters, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the report said. The air raid lasted only 30 minutes.
In a statement issued after the attack began, Joe Biden warned that "if you hurt Americans, we will respond." "The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world," the statement said. But let all who might try to hurt us know this: if you hurt the Americans, we will respond. ”
So far, the U.S. says the counterattack has "hit what we want to achieve." Lieutenant General Douglas Sims, chief of operations at the Joint Staff, said the timing of the attack was determined by the weather, with the best weather occurring on Friday. "Initial indications are that we did hit a site related to ammunition and logistics, triggering multiple secondary **," he said.
U.S. airstrikes on the headquarters of the 13th Brigade of the People's Mobilization Force in the Iraqi city of Anbal Qaim, killing 15 members and wounding more than 25. Abdul Rahman al-Rawi, a civilian from the Iraqi city of Qaim, whose house is located near the headquarters of the pro-Iranian Tafuf militia, is also reported to have been killed.
The mayor of Qaim, Turki Mahalawi, said the attack hit three houses that the Popular Mobilization Forces used as **warehouses.
Four Assad soldiers were reportedly killed after the United States launched heavy air strikes on the Deir ez-Zor region in eastern Syria (mainly Ayash, Deir ez-Zor city, Maiadin, and Abukmaar). Two people were killed in the city of Mayadin, two in the city of Deir ez-Zor, and several others were wounded. A few days before the air strike, all bases were evacuated. Syria has released the names of two fallen heroes.
In a statement, Yahya Rasul, a spokesman for the Iraqi armed forces, condemned the attack as "a violation of Iraq's sovereignty."
An Iraqi military spokesman said the United States had launched airstrikes on Iraq's border areas and warned that the attacks could provoke instability in the region. "These airstrikes violate Iraq's sovereignty, undermine Iraq's efforts and pose a threat that could lead to dire consequences for Iraq and the region," Yahya Rasul said in a statement. ”
Syrian Bashar al-Assad also strongly condemned the attack.
Syria warned that the US attack "exacerbates the conflict in the Middle East in a very dangerous way" and said it was "deeply concerned about the paralysis of the UN Security Council".
"[Syria] condemns this flagrant violation by the United States and categorically rejects all pretexts and lies propagated by the United States to justify this attack," Syria said in a statement. ”
The U.S. has no plans to bomb Iran because it would lead to a serious escalation. It has been repeatedly stressed that Washington has no intention of going to war with Iran, despite accusations that Iran provided for the organization behind the Tower 22 attack. Iran has also previously warned the United States against any direct strikes on Iranian territory, saying that if the United States does, Iran will respond quickly and violently.
The United States had warned that it would launch a series of retaliatory strikes in a little more than a day. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Friday: "This is the beginning of our response. ** More action has been directed to hold the IRGC and its affiliated militias accountable for attacks on U.S. and coalition forces. These will unfold at a time and place of our choosing. February** Dynamic Incentive Plan