The U.S. Military conducted targeted strikes against facilities in Syria on Thursday night that are used by Iran’s military and its terrorist proxy group.
The strikes come after U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria had come under attack in recent days from Islamic terrorists backed by Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.
The “U.S. military forces conducted self-defense strikes on two facilities in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups,” said Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. “These precision self-defense strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups that began on October 17.”
The statement noted that repeated attacks from Iranian-backed terrorist proxy groups throughout the region have resulted in 21 U.S. soldiers being injured and one contractor dying from a heart attack that he suffered during an attack. Nineteen of the U.S. soldiers had been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries.
“The United States will not tolerate such attacks and will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests,” the statement said. “The United States does not seek conflict and has no intention nor desire to engage in further hostilities, but these Iranian-backed attacks against U.S. forces are unacceptable and must stop.”
“Iran wants to hide its hand and deny its role in these attacks against our forces,” the statement continued. “We will not let them. If attacks by Iran’s proxies against U.S. forces continue, we will not hesitate to take further necessary measures to protect our people.”
“These narrowly tailored strikes in self-defense were intended solely to protect and defend U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria,” the statement concluded. “They are separate and distinct from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, and do not constitute a shift in our approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict. We continue to urge all state and non-state entities not to take action that would escalate into a broader regional conflict.”
