U.S. strikes back at Iran-backed groups in Syria as skirmishes intensify

The U.S. military launched additional retaliatory strikes on Iran-backed forces in Syria on Thursday, in the latest back-and-forth with militants that American officials said were being directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

In the latest skirmish, the militants planned to launch additional rockets on U.S. personnel, Defense Department officials said, but U.S. forces prevented the attack by striking the militants with AH-64 Apache attack helicopters, AC-130 gunships and M777 artillery. The additional strikes killed four more enemy fighters and destroyed seven enemy rocket launchers, according to a release from U.S. Central Command.

Iran-affiliated forces have recently stepped up low-level attacks on U.S. forces in Syria, including one incident on Aug. 15 when they launched rockets at the Green Village base near the Iraqi border.

The Biden administration responded to that attack with precision airstrikes in Deir ez-Zor, Syria, on Tuesday that targeted infrastructure facilities used by groups affiliated with the IRGC.

In retaliation, the militants launched rocket attacks on two separate sites in northeastern Syria that wounded three U.S. service members on Wednesday. At roughly 7:30 p.m. local time, rockets landed inside the perimeter of Mission Support Site Conoco, and a further barrage later landed in the vicinity of Mission Support Site Green Village, the military said.

One U.S. service member in Conoco was treated for a minor injury and returned to duty, while two others are under evaluation for minor injuries.

U.S. forces initially responded to the Wednesday strikes using attack helicopters, according to Central Command. The response destroyed three vehicles and equipment used to launch some of the rockets, and initial assessments indicate that two or three suspected militants were killed.

The precision strikes were intended to send a message to Tehran that the United States will defend itself, officials said.

“We're not going to tolerate attacks by Iran-backed forces on our forces anywhere in the world to include in Syria, and we won't hesitate to protect ourselves and take additional measures as appropriate,” Colin Kahl, the Pentagon's undersecretary for policy, told reporters on Wednesday.

The U.S. military had scoped out 11 bunker targets at the site, Kahl said, but ended up targeting only nine of them because shortly before the strike, there was new evidence there might be individuals near the bunker. The forces held off on striking those targets “out of an abundance” of caution in order to avoid casualties, he said.

The IRGC is responsible for and directing the attacks, said one senior DoD official.

The attacks come as the U.S. continues to pursue negotiations with Tehran to agree on a new nuclear deal to replace the 2015 agreement former President Donald Trump withdrew from during his term in office.

The strikes underscore that the U.S. will not hesitate to defend itself when attacked, Kahl said, and that is not connected to the negotiations.