US kills four Iran-backed militants in Syria
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The US said on Thursday that it killed four suspected Iran-backed militants were killed in Syria as the US responded to a rocket attack on its bases a day before.
“U.S. forces responded today to rocket attacks at two sites in Syria, destroying three vehicles and equipment used to launch some of the rockets,” read an early Thursday statement from the US Central Command (CENTCOM), adding that “initial assessments indicate that two or three suspected Iran-backed militants conducting one of the attacks were killed”.
According to the CENTCOM statement released on Wednesday, American bases Conoco and Green Village came under attack on Wednesday evening.
Later on Thursday, CENTCOM released a statement confirming their strikes on Iran-backed militias had killed “four enemy fighters” and destroyed seven rocket launchers.
“We will respond appropriately and proportionally to attacks on our servicemembers … No group will strike at our troops with impunity,” CENTCOM commander General Michael Erik Kurilla said.
One US service member was treated for a minor injury, and two others are under evaluation for minor injuries, CENTCOM added.
US forces on Tuesday launched airstrikes targeting facilities used by Iranian-backed militias in Deir ez-Zor province.
An Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) general was killed while “on a mission” in Syria, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday without providing further details.
Iran on Wednesday afternoon called on the US to leave Syria “immediately,” while deeming the attack a “violation of sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity” of the war-torn country.
The reprisal attack on militias comes after drones, allegedly launched by Iran-backed militias, targeted a US military base in Syria last week without causing casualties.
“We will take appropriate measures to protect our forces,” the coalition forces said at the time.
Updated at 6:04pm with casualty confirmation from the US