The United States has conducted air strikes against Iran-backed groups in eastern Syria in response to a drone attack that killed a US contractor, according to US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
US officials stated that the strikes occurred on Thursday night, targeting facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Fourteen pro-Iran fighters were reportedly killed in the attack, according to the UK-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The US has previously responded to attacks on its bases in Syria with air strikes, including in August 2020 when sites linked to the IRGC were bombed. US troops have been operating out of bases in southern and eastern Syria as part of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State (IS).
The IRGC has developed a substantial presence in Syria, sending hundreds of troops to advise President Bashar al-Assad’s forces and train thousands of militiamen.
The fate of 40 people remains unknown after an attack on truffle hunters by IS in the eastern desert, while seven civilians and eight tribesmen were reportedly killed in Hama.
