After a fatal drone assault on an American outpost in Jordan last Sunday, the US Air Force launched a large air raid against extremists in Iraq and Syria who were backed by Iran. The raid involved dropping over 125 bombs on over 80 sites. Regrettably, three US servicemen were lost in the incident.
According to US President Joe Biden, the attack was retaliation for a drone strike that claimed the lives of three US soldiers in Jordan. “If you harm an American, we will respond,” he said. Furthermore, he emphasized that the US action was not over. According to the US military’s Central Command (Centcom), the attack was the first of many scheduled attacks that took place at approximately midnight local time (4 pm ET). The US military attacked around 85 targets, according to Centcom, using a variety of aircraft, including long-range bombers that were operated out of the US.
Here’s the most recent update on the US attacks
On Saturday morning, details emerged about the aftermath of the U.S. military attacks that took place overnight and targeted locations in Syria and Iraq that were utilized by Iranian personnel and militias with Iranian support. Following the death of three US soldiers last week, the Biden administration issued a warning that more attacks would follow. According to the country’s defense ministry, among those slain in Syria were both troops and civilians. Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring organization based in Britain with researchers in the nation, claims that at least 18 members of organizations backed by Iran were killed in attacks on 26 places there.
U.S. officials confirmed that 85 targets at seven sites in Iran had been hit, but a closer assessment is expected in the coming days. The targets were linked to specific attacks against U.S. troops in the region, including command and control operations, intelligence centers, weapons facilities, and bunkers used by Iran’s Quds Force and affiliated militia groups. President Biden stated that the response began today, following the return of U.S. soldiers killed at a military outpost in Jordan. Iran and its allied militias have launched over 160 attacks on U.S. troops since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.
The US attacks “Iran-linked” sites in Syria
The Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in Iran is said to have been using infrastructure in eastern Syria as a target of air strikes the US claims it has conducted. President Joe Biden gave the order for the attacks in Syria’s Deir Az Zor, according to a statement released by the US military’s Central Command on Wednesday. Syria’s government remained silent at first, and Iran refuted any connections to the fighters. 
The airstrikes, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, had targeted the Ayash Camp, which was mostly manned by Shia militants from Afghanistan who were sponsored by Iran. According to the monitor, the strike claimed the lives of at least six combatants, both foreign and Syrian.
The attacks “took proportionate, deliberate action intended to limit the risk of escalation and minimize the risk of casualties,” according to a statement from the Central Command.
However, the Central Command reported at least six Syrian and foreign fighters killed in an attack, aiming to limit escalation and minimize casualties. Spokesperson Colonel Joe Buccino stated that the strikes were necessary to protect and defend US personnel, despite not identifying the targets or providing casualty figures.
Formal talks between the US and Iraq to end the US-led military alliance
The first round of negotiations between the US and other foreign forces in Iraq has taken place, and Baghdad anticipates that the discussions will result in a schedule for the withdrawal of these soldiers. Top representatives of the US-led coalition and the Iraqi military convened in Baghdad on Saturday, along with Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani.
However, according to a statement from Al-Sudani’s office, the joint commission marked “the commencement of the first round of bilateral dialogue between Iraq and the United States of America to end the Coalition in Iraq.” “A decade after its inception and after it achieves its mission in collaboration with Iraqi security and military forces, military experts will oversee ending the military mission of the Global Coalition against Daesh [ISIL],” the statement continued.
About 2,500 US soldiers are still stationed in Iraq as part of the coalition that was established in 2014 to support the Iraqi government in its fight against ISIL. The US claims that last year was when it first outlined its plans to form a committee to negotiate the conditions of the mission’s conclusion. However, as Israel intensifies its war on Gaza, Iran-aligned organizations have been attacking US soldiers in Syria and Iraq regularly. This has prompted US retaliation attacks and Iraqi accusations of US “aggression” against its territory.
