WASHINGTON (AP) — The U. S. military has struck three facilities in Iraq and two anti-ship missiles in Yemen operated by Iranian-backed militias that have targeted U. S. workers and ships in the region as the U. S. tries to salvage the war. between Israel and Hamas.
The actions taken in Iraq and Yemen on Tuesday night targeted sites the United States says are targets of attacks against American forces in Iraq and Syria and threatened the American military and warships in the Red Sea.
U. S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that the moves in Iraq were directed through President Joe Biden and targeted facilities used by the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah defense force and other Iranian-affiliated equipment in Iraq.
“These precision measures are a direct reaction to a series of escalating attacks on U. S. and coalition labor corps in Iraq and Syria through Iranian-sponsored defense forces,” Austin said. The measures hit defense forces facilities in Jurf al-Sakhar, south of Baghdad, al-Qaim and some other anonymous sites in western Iraq, two U. S. officials said.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said the measures “flagrantly violate Iraq’s sovereignty” and contribute to an “irresponsible escalation,” according to a statement from his office. TheArray, signed through army spokesman Yahya Rasool, said Iraq considered the measures “hostile acts” and was taking steps to protect the lives of Iraqis.
The Popular Mobilization Forces, or PMF, a coalition of mostly Shiite armed teams under the authority of the Iraqi army, said the attack near the Syrian border killed one of its fighters and wounded two, while the attack south of Baghdad caused damage to curtains.
U. S. Central Command said it also struck two anti-ship missiles belonging to Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels that were ready to be released and were aimed at the southern component of the Red Sea.
“U.S. forces identified the missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen and determined that they presented an imminent threat to merchant vessels and the U.S. Navy ships in the region,” Central Command said.
Both fronts – ground attacks in Iraq and Syria, and seaborne attacks from Yemen – have seen a significant increase in launches and counterattacks in recent days.
The U. S. actions against Kataib Hezbollah sites in Iraq came hours after the U. S. said militants fired two one-way attack drones at the Al-Asad air base, wounding U. S. service members and damaging infrastructure. And they followed the militia’s most serious attack on the airbase this year, when it introduced several ballistic missiles on Saturday.
U. S. Central Command said it targeted Kataib Hezbollah’s headquarters, garage and sites for rocket, missile and one-way attack drone capabilities.
In drone strikes on Assad earlier Tuesday, U. S. defenses managed to intercept the first drone, but it crashed into the base as the second drone hit the base, U. S. officials said. The injuries, in addition to head trauma and smoke inhalation, are thought to be minor. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to provide the main points that had been publicly announced.
The moves at Houthi missile launch sites in Yemen were a joint operation on Monday night in which the United States and Britain used Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets introduced from warships and submarines to destroy Houthi garage sites, drones and missile launchers.
On both fronts, the Iranian-backed militias have employed ballistic missiles to target U.S. bases and ships, which marks an escalation, said Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies who specializes in Iran.
Militias have used drones and rockets to attack. Tehran provided Shiite militias in Iraq with short- and short-range ballistic missiles in 2019, Taleblu said, but they had not been used before the November attacks.
During Saturday’s larger-scale attack, several ballistic missiles and rockets introduced through Iranian-backed militias targeted Assad, but most were intercepted through air defense systems, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters on Monday, adding that the munitions had reached the base.
Al-Asad is an air base in western Iraq where U. S. troops have trained Iraqi security forces and are now coordinating operations to counter the Islamic State militant group.
Singh called Saturday’s attack an “obstacle,” the first time since Nov. 20 that Iranian-mandated forces in Iraq had fired ballistic missiles at U. S. bases there.
A coalition of militias calling itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has claimed credit for a series of attacks on U. S. forces. Kataib Hezbollah is one of the teams within this umbrella organization.
Iran has also provided ballistic missiles to the Houthis, and the organization is the first Iranian representative to fire medium-range ballistic missiles and anti-ship ballistic missiles, Taleblu said. “With Yemen, we see it as an escalation of the problem. “
Saturday’s ballistic missile strike on Assad wounded four U. S. service members, all of whom returned to duty. A member of the Iraqi security forces was also wounded.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began in early October, there have been more than 151 attacks on U.S. facilities in Syria and Iraq. According to the Pentagon, two attacks took place on Monday and included multiple rockets fired at U.S. and coalition troops at Mission Support Site Euphrates in Syria and a single rocket fired at the Rumalyn Landing Zone in Syria. Neither attack resulted in casualties or damage.
The U. S. retaliated against backlogged militias last month, ordering a series of retaliatory measures after 3 U. S. service members were wounded in a drone strike in northern Iraq. Kataib Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack, which was carried out through a one-way attack. hum.