US strikes Iran linked targets after Jordan retaliation: 10 points you must know
In a massive air raid on Iran-backed militants in Iraq and Syria, US Air Force hit over 80 targets with more than 125 bombs in retaliation to a deadly drone strike targeting an American base in Jordan last Sunday, resulting in the unfortunate loss of three U.S. service members.
The US president, Joe Biden, said the attack was a response to the drone strike that killed three US soldiers in Jordan. He warned, “If you harm an American, we will respond.” He also said that this was not the end of the US action.
“Our response began today. It will continue at times and places of our choosing.”
The US military’s Central Command (Centcom) said the attack happened around midnight local time (4pm ET) and was the first of several planned strikes. Centcom said, “US military forces struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft to include long-range bombers flown from United States.”
The targets were facilities used by the IRGC Quds Force and its allied militias.
Here are the 10 key takeaways from the deadly drone attack retaliation:
The US has unleashed a wave of airstrikes on Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria, in a show of force after a deadly drone attack on US troops in Jordan. The strikes, which began on Friday, targeted more than 85 sites linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and its proxies, according to US Central Command.
The US said the strikes were a response to the drone strike that killed three US service members and wounded several others at Tower 22, a military base near Amman, last weekend. The US blamed the attack on Kataib Hezbollah and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, two Iranian-backed militia groups operating in Iraq and Syria.
President Joe Biden issued a stern warning to Iran and its allies, saying, “The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let all those who might seek to do us harm know this: if you harm an American, we will respond.”
The US claimed the strikes were precise and “hit exactly what we meant to hit”, hitting command and control centers, intelligence facilities, rocket and missile launchers, drone storages, and logistics and munition depots belonging to the militia groups and their IRGC sponsors.
Lt Gen Douglas Sims, director for operations on the joint staff, said, “The initial indications are that we hit exactly what we meant to hit with a number of secondary explosions associated with the ammunition and logistics locations.”
The strikes reportedly killed at least 18 Iran-backed fighters and destroyed at least 26 important sites housing pro-Iran groups in eastern Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group. The raids spanned a large area of eastern Syria, from Deir ez-Zor to Albu Kamal, near the Iraq border.
The strikes also hit Iraqi border areas, sparking condemnation from the Iraqi government, which said the attacks violated its sovereignty and threatened regional stability. Yahya Rasool, an Iraqi military spokesperson, said: “These airstrikes constitute a violation of Iraqi sovereignty, undermine the efforts of the Iraqi government, and pose a threat that could lead Iraq and the region into dire consequences.”
The US denied any intention to escalate the conflict with Iran, which has been locked in a tense standoff with Washington over its nuclear program and regional influence. US officials told CNN that the US had no plan to bomb Iran, which would be a major escalation. They also said that Washington did not want to go to war with Iran, despite the allegation that it had armed the groups behind the Tower 22 attack.
Iran, for its part, has also warned the US not to launch any direct strike on its territory, saying it would retaliate with force if the US did so.
The US said the strikes were only the beginning of its response to the drone attack, and that more actions would follow to hold the IRGC and its militias accountable for their attacks on US and coalition forces. US defense secretary Lloyd Austin said, “This is the start of our response. The president has directed additional actions to hold the IRGC and affiliated militias accountable for their attacks on US and coalition forces. These will unfold at times and places of our choosing.”