Over the weekend, attacks on US bases in Iraq and Syria continued. Al-Mayadeen News and other regional sites reported multiple strikes by Iranian-backed militias on Saturday and Sunday.
Russian media has reported recent Pentagon airstrikes on Syria, describing them as an “unsuccessful bid to deter the militias.”
A statement by a coalition of Shia paramilitary groups said, “The Mujahideen of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq targeted the American occupation base in Al-Tanf, Syria, with two drones, which directly hit their targets.”
They attacked from just across the Iraq border into Syria.
According to two different reports, two drones bombed both the al-Omar base and oil field and the al-Shaddadi facility in eastern Syria. It was just hours after the US airstrikes that the latter came under assault.
🚨BREAKING: Official Statement by the Islamic Republic in Iraq on Attacks Against U.S Bases
"The Mujahideen of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq targeted the American occupation base, Al-Shaddadi, south of Al-Hasakah, Syria, with two drones, which directly hit their targets.… pic.twitter.com/h1BHmqXYLk
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) October 29, 2023
Al-Mayadeen previously referred to a declaration by the Iraqi Hezbollah Brigades, in which they declared their willingness to engage in “a war of attrition against the enemy that will extend for years.”
On Friday morning, the United States launched a series of airstrikes against numerous Iranian-backed proxies in Syria. According to a summary of official US remarks provided by the Associated Press:
Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said Friday that the strikes near Boukamal by F-16 and F-15 fighter aircraft targeted a weapons storage facility and ammunition storage facility used by the IRGC and affiliated groups. “Both facilities were destroyed,” he said. “We currently assess there were no casualties in the strikes.”
“These precision self-defense strikes are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against US personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups,” US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in the aftermath.
“Iran wants to hide its hand and deny its role in these attacks against our forces. We will not let them. If attacks by Iran’s proxies against US forces continue, we will not hesitate to take further necessary measures to protect our people,” he added.
Iraqi Shia militias have released a video of them launching a suicide drone toward a U.S. military base.
A Palestinian flag is showed on the drone before it is launched.
More than 20 U.S. soldiers have been wounded in recent attacks on military bases in Syria and Iraq. pic.twitter.com/OB7VHDGsyb
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) October 28, 2023
It is already evident that the US strikes had little deterrent impact, as rocket and drone attacks continued throughout the weekend.
In response to Israel’s escalating ground assault on Gaza, the United States has expanded its spy plane battles throughout the eastern Mediterranean, including increasing drone activity.