The U.S. military said four of its aircraft carried out precision strikes on Tuesday in Syria’s Deir al-Zor against facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The airstrikes were in retaliation for attacks earlier this month on bases where U.S. troops operate, military officials said
The strikes came even as the United States aimed to respond to a draft agreement proposed by the European Union that would bring back the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran that former President Donald Trump abandoned and current President Joe Biden has sought to revive.
“At President Biden’s direction, US military forces conducted precision airstrikes in Deir ez-Zor Syria today,” said Col. Joe Buccino, US Central Command (CENTCOM) communication director. He said that the strikes targeted infrastructure facilities.
The military’s Central Command said the strikes were aimed at protecting U.S. forces from attack by Iran-backed groups.
It cited one such incident on August 15th involving a drone attack on a compound run by coalition and U.S.-backed Syrian opposition fighters, with no casualties.
“The president gave the direction for these strikes,” said spokesman Army Colonel Joe Buccino.
Central Command called the strikes a “proportionate, deliberate action intended to limit the risk of escalation and minimise the risk of casualties.”
The statement about Tuesday’s strike did not mention whether there were any casualties.
Image file picture, Deir al-Zor: Par Simon Evans — https://www.flickr.com/photos/156717648@N03/26340187379/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/…
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