1 year ago
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Image source, Reuters
The US has astir 900 troops operating successful confederate and eastbound Syria
The US has carried retired aerial strikes against Iran-linked groups successful eastbound Syria aft a drone onslaught killed a US contractor, the US defence main said.
Eight pro-Iran fighters were killed, according to a monitoring group.
Defence officials said the aerial strikes happened connected Thursday night, hours aft the drone onslaught which US quality said was "of Iranian origin".
US bases successful north-east Syria person travel nether onslaught before, with the US responding with aerial strikes.
Last August, the US bombed sites successful eastbound Syria which it said were linked to Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) - its astir almighty equipped unit - aft rocket attacks connected US troops there.
Thursday night's aerial strikes were carried retired connected President Biden's orders "in effect to... [the drone] onslaught arsenic good arsenic a bid of caller attacks against conjugation forces successful Syria by groups affiliated with the IRGC", US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin said.
He said they had targeted "facilities utilized by groups affiliated with... [the] IRGC".
The US defence section said the contractor had been killed and 5 US work unit and a 2nd contractor wounded erstwhile the drone struck a attraction installation connected a conjugation basal adjacent Hasakah earlier successful the day.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights - a UK-based monitoring radical - said 8 Iranian-backed militiamen were killed successful the aerial strikes, which it said targeted positions successful al-Bukamal and al-Mayadeen successful Deir al-Zour province, and Deir al-Zour city.
About 900 US troops are operating retired of bases successful confederate and eastbound Syria, without the support of the Syrian government, arsenic portion of the US-led planetary conjugation against the jihadist radical Islamic State (IS).
They are tasked with preventing a resurgence of IS, whose militants erstwhile controlled ample swathes of Syria earlier being defeated successful 2019 pursuing abstracted campaigns waged by US-backed Kurdish and Arab militia fighters and Iran- and Russia-backed pro-government forces.
The IRGC has built a important beingness successful Syria since the civilian warfare began successful 2011, sending hundreds of troops to counsel President Bashar al-Assad's forces and to bid and limb thousands of militiamen.
English (US)