Thw US “owns one-third of Syria,” including oil fields, says Biden official.
Biden Orders Attacks on Iranian Facilities
After Attacks on US Troops Inside Syria
RIA Novosti
WASHINGTON (October 27, 2023) — The United States attacked two sites in Syria, which were used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and pro-Iranian groups, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said.
“By order of President Biden, US forces launched a self-defense strike at two sites in Western Syria that were used by the IRGC and related groups,” Austin said in a statement.
According to Reuters, with reference to a source in the Pentagon, the targets of the attacks of American F-16 fighters in Syria were warehouses with weapons and ammunition
The attacks, according to Austin, are not related to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and do not mean a change in policy in Washington. He called them a response to attacks against Americans in Iraq and Syria, which began on October 17, as a result of which one contractor who worked for the Pentagon was killed, another 21 soldiers were slightly injured.
According to Austin, Biden’s order demonstrates that the United States will not tolerate such attacks and will defend itself and its interests.
“The US does not seek conflict and does not intend to engage in further hostilities, but these supported Iran attacks must stop,” he said.
The head of the Pentagon added that the United States will not allow Iran to hide its involvement in the attacks and will not hesitate in taking further measures for self-defense.
Earlier Pentagon official representative Patrick Rider reported that the US military from October 17 to 26 was subjected to 16 attacks in Iraq and Syria. Before that, Joe Biden addressed the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with a warning, stating that the United States will respond in case of attacks on US military personnel Middle East, and called [on Iran] to be prepared for this.
Pentagon claims retaliation for attacks on US bases inside Syria
US Airstrikes Target Eastern Syria
Dave DeCamp / AntiWar.com
(October 26, 2023) — The Pentagon said Thursday night that it launched airstrikes in eastern Syria that targeted two facilities “used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and affiliated groups,” a significant escalation that makes a regional war more likely amid Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement that the strikes were in response to the series of rocket and drone attacks that have targeted US bases in Iraq and Syria in recent weeks, which the US is blaming on “Iranian-backed militias,” referring to Shia militias that operate in the region.
“These precision self-defense strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against US personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups that began on October 17,” Austin said.
The US has said Iran is responsible for the attacks on US troops, although the Pentagon acknowledged it has no evidence Iran directed them. The Shia militias are also known to act independently. A US official recently told CNN that how willing those groups are to act independently is a “persistent intelligence gap” for the US.
The spate of attacks on US forces in Iraq and Syria was due to President Biden’s full-throated support for Israel’s onslaught on Gaza. Earlier on Thursday, the Pentagon said it was deploying an additional 900 troops to the Middle East as part of its plans to bolster air defenses in the region.
US troops based in Iraq and Syria have come under rocket and drone attacks over a dozen times since last week, resulting in at least 21 injuries. Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said 19 troops had been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries.
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