A video screen grab shows an F/A-18 Super Hornet taking off from the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower on Jan. 12, 2024, to target Houthi militant sites in Yemen. (U.S. Central Command)
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military on Tuesday conducted strikes on three facilities in Iraq used by Iranian-backed militias in retaliation for recent attacks against American forces in Iraq and Syria, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
“President [Joe Biden] and I will not hesitate to take necessary action to defend [U.S. and coalition troops] and our interests. We call on these groups and their Iranian sponsors to immediately cease these attacks,” Austin said in a statement announcing the strikes.
The strikes took place at about 12:15 a.m. local time against the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia group and other Iran-affiliated groups in Iraq, according to U.S. Central Command, which is responsible for U.S. military operations in the Middle East. The strikes were in retaliation for the attack on Saturday on al-Asad air base in Iraq that caused at least four U.S. service members to suffer traumatic brain injuries. The attack targeted Kataib Hezbollah headquarters, storage, and training locations for rocket, missile and one-way attack drone capabilities.
The U.S. strikes hit militia facilities in Jurf al-Sakhar, which is south of Baghdad, al-Qaim, and another unnamed site in western Iraq, The Associated Press reported.
The latest strikes are the third set of attacks in three days. Airstrikes on Sunday killed three Islamic militants in Somalia and the U.S., along with the United Kingdom and other nations, conducted strikes against eight targets on Monday in areas of Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels.
CENTCOM said the strikes conducted by the U.S. and U.K. were also conducted with support from Australia, Bahrain, Canada and the Netherlands. The Iran-backed Houthis were targeted in retaliation for the group’s ongoing attacks on shipping lanes in the Red Sea.
“The thirty-plus attacks that the Houthis have launched on commercial and naval vessels since mid-November constitute a threat to all countries that rely on international maritime shipping. We condemn these attacks, and demand an end to them,” the U.S. said in a multinational statement on Monday.
U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria have been attacked 151 times by Iranian-linked militants since October, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Monday.
The militant attacks began soon after Hamas fighters attacked Israel on Oct. 7. The U.S. has responded with numerous strikes, including one this month in Baghdad that killed an Iran-backed militia leader.
