United States conducts retaliatory airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against IRGC
Illustrative photo: the U.S. launched an airstrike on targets in Iraq and Syria (wikipedia.org)
The United States military has conducted strikes in response on the territory of Iraq and Syria, targeting entities associated with the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Tehran-supported militants, according to the U.S. Central Command and Reuters.
The U.S. strikes on Friday evening were in response to a recent attack on a U.S. base in Jordan, resulting in the death of three service members and injuries to around forty others.
In a statement, the U.S. Central Command forces conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria on February 2 against the IRGC and associated militants.
"U.S. military forces struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft to include long-range bombers flown from United States. The airstrikes employed more than 125 precision munitions," the statement read.
The targets struck included command and control operational centers, reconnaissance centers, rocket, and drone storage facilities, as well as logistics and supply chain facilities of militia groups and the IRGC that "facilitated attacks on U.S. and coalition forces."
The Reuters report suggests that these strikes are believed to be "just the first in a multi-layered response" by the Biden administration to the attacks on the base in Jordan carried out by Iran-backed militants.
U.S. response to the killing of military personnel in Jordan
A few days ago, drones attacked a U.S. military base in Jordan. As a result of the strike, three military personnel were killed, and dozens more were injured.
Following this incident, U.S. President Joe Biden stated that Iran is responsible for the attack, as the military was targeted with Iranian weaponry. He also mentioned that he had already decided on how to respond to such an act of terrorism.
Today, on February 2, The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. will launch strikes on Iranian targets in Syria and Iraq over the weekend (February 3-4).
