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US Launches Airstrikes in Iraq after Attack on Base Injures 3 Americans
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Following an attack on the airbase in Iraq that injured three U.S. service members, the U.S. struck back at Iranian-backed militant groups.
Published Dec. 25, 2023 Updated Dec. 26, 2023, 12:03 a.m. ET
The United States conducted a new round of airstrikes early on Tuesday in Iraq, most likely killing militants and destroying three facilities used by Iranian proxies targeting American and coalition troops.
The strikes were conducted in retaliation for various assaults, including a drone attack on Erbil air base by members of Kataib Hezbollah and affiliated groups that injured three American service members, one critically.
“My prayers are with the brave Americans who were injured,” Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said in a statement.
The latest strikes targeted facilities used by Kataib Hezbollah, a group considered a proxy of Iran. The United States holds Iran and its aligned militias responsible for near-daily rocket and drone attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria. The Biden administration aims to deter such attacks with retaliatory airstrikes while avoiding a wider war.
Following the attack on Christmas morning, President Biden ordered the Defense Department to prepare response options, later authorizing strikes around 8:45 p.m. Eastern time.
The facilities targeted had been used to launch unmanned aerial drone attacks by Kataib Hezbollah and its affiliates, U.S. officials said.
Last month, the United States struck an operations center and a command-and-control node south of Baghdad used by Kataib Hezbollah. The group’s political wing supports Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani of Iraq.
Since the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, Iranian-backed groups have launched numerous attacks on American troops and bases, as well as commercial ships in the Red Sea. The Biden administration has retaliated against the militants in Iraq and Syria, avoiding hitting the Houthi militants in Yemen who target traffic in the Red Sea.
U.S. Central Command stated that the latest U.S. airstrikes in Iraq destroyed the targeted facilities and most likely killed a number of militants, with no indications of civilian casualties.
“These strikes are intended to hold accountable those elements directly responsible for attacks on coalition forces in Iraq and Syria and degrade their ability to continue attacks,” Gen. » …
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