Washington (AFP) – The Pentagon announced Thursday that American forces and the international coalition forces led by Washington to combat jihadists in Syria and Iraq have been subjected to at least 16 attacks since the beginning of this October in these two countries, accusing “militias supported by Iran” of carrying out behind these attacks.
Published on: 10/27/2023 – 01:27
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Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder told reporters that since October 17, “American and coalition forces have been attacked 12 times in Iraq and four times in Syria,” explaining that these attacks were carried out with drones and missiles.
He added that the latest of these attacks occurred on Thursday in the Kurdistan region of Iraq and caused “minor damage to the infrastructure” without “causing any human losses.”
Most, if not all, of these attacks were claimed by a group calling itself the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq.”
This is not one of the known armed groups active in the region, nor has it announced its affiliation with or receipt of support from any specific government.
But the Pentagon confirmed that Iran was behind the perpetrators of these attacks.
“We know that these attacks are being carried out by Iranian-backed militias, and therefore we consider Iran responsible for these groups,” Ryder said.
Armed groups close to Iran threatened to attack American interests against the backdrop of Washington’s support for Israel, while one of them – Kataib Hezbollah (one of the most prominent factions of the Popular Mobilization Forces) – stressed the need for American forces to leave the country, otherwise “they will taste the fire of hell in this world before the afterlife.”
Washington has about 900 soldiers in Syria and about 2,500 soldiers in Iraq, stationed in these two countries as part of efforts to prevent the return of ISIS.
The jihadist organization controlled large areas in these two countries before it was defeated by local ground forces supported by international coalition air strikes in a conflict that lasted for years.
American forces in Iraq play a training and advisory role, after the official end of the coalition’s combat mission in December 2021, while those stationed in Syria carry out repeated strikes against ISIS.
© 2023 AFP
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2023-10-26 23:27:00
