President Joe Biden ordered military airstrikes in eastern Syria, along the Iraq border, targeting Iranian-backed militias in retaliation of a Feb. 15 rocket strike in Erbil, northern Iraq, that left several Americans injured, according to Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby. The strike targeted structures in the town of Al Bukamal that belong to Kataib Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed militias that have launched rocket attacks in the past against American facilities, he continued. The Feb. 15 rocket attack against a U.S. base that killed a coalition contractor and left several American contractors and a U.S. military service member wounded. The Pentagon had not blamed Iranian-backed militias for the attack even though forensic evidence recovered pointed that a connection. “(T)he strikes destroyed multiple facilities located at a border control point used by a number of Iranian-backed militant groups, including Kait’ib Hezbollah (KH) and Kait’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS), Kirby is quoted via the DoD website. This “proportionate military response” was conducted together with diplomatic measures, including consultation with coalition partners, said Kirby, a retired Navy flag officer. It sends “an unambiguous message: President Biden will act to protect American and Coalition personnel. At the same time, we have acted in a deliberate manner that aims to de-escalate the overall situation in both eastern Syria and Iraq.” (Sources: Yahoo & DoD 02/25/21) U.S. Conducts Defensive Precision Strike > U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE > Release
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