US Carries Out Airstrikes on Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Facilities
The U.S. military conducted airstrikes on two locations in eastern Syria involving Iranian-backed groups, hitting a training location and a weapons facility, according to the Pentagon and U.S. officials.
It marks the third time in a bit more than two weeks that the U.S. has retaliated against the militants for what has been a growing number of attacks on bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria.
In a statement, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the strikes targeted sites near Abukama and Mayadin and were used by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps as well as Iran-backed militias.
“The President has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he directed today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests,” Austin said.
A U.S. official said one site also included weapons storage. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details of a military operation.
The militant groups, many operating under the umbrella of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, have carried out nearly 50 attacks since Oct. 17 on bases housing U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria.
That was the day a powerful explosion rocked a Gaza hospital, triggering protests in a number of Muslim nations.
Hamas blamed the blast on Israel and said 500 people had been killed. Those claims were later refuted.
The Israel Defense Forces presented evidence on social media that the explosion was caused by Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which has been lobbing rockets into Israel.
Islamic Jihad struck a Hospital in Gaza—the IDF did not.
Listen to the terrorists as they realize this themselves: pic.twitter.com/u7WyU8Rxwz
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 18, 2023
Israel has declared war on Hamas in Gaza in response to the terrorist group’s brutal attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 in which an estimated 1,200 people were killed, most of them civilians.
Islamist groups have vowed retaliation against the U.S. for backing Israel in the war against Hamas.
According to the Pentagon, about 56 U.S. personnel have been injured in the attacks in Syria and Iraq, but all have returned to duty.
Their injuries are a combination of traumatic brain injury and other minor wounds, officials said.
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
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