The US Central Command (CENTCOM), responsible for the Middle East region, announced on Monday that it launched airstrikes on two locations in Syria, targeting organisations supported by Iran.
The CENTCOM statement specified that airstrikes targeted nine sites across two locations connected to Iranian-backed groups in Syria, in retaliation for attacks against US forces in Syria in the preceding 24 hours.
“Our message is clear. Attacks on US and allied forces in the region will not be tolerated,” emphasised General Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM’s commander. “We will continue to take all necessary measures to protect our personnel and allies, responding to reckless attacks,” he added.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a non-governmental organisation, the US strikes claimed the lives of four fighters from pro-Iranian groups.
The US has deployed approximately 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria as part of the international military coalition formed in 2014 to combat the jihadist organisation Islamic State, which had taken control of vast areas in Syria and Iraq before being defeated in 2019. Nevertheless, jihadist cells remain active, particularly in remote areas.
The Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas called on Monday for the governments of Arab and Muslim countries to follow through on statements they made earlier during their summit in Riyadh and compel Israel to end its “offensive.”
“The affirmation of our people’s national rights, foremost among them the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, requires immediate efforts and practical solutions to force (Israel) to end its offensive and genocide against our people,” said Hamas in a statement.
