U.S. Bombs 85 Iran-backed Targets In Syria, Iraq

The US military has launched airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against more than 85 targets linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) and the militias it backs, in retaliation for last weekend's attack in Jordan that killed three US troops, Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart reported for Reuters.

The strikes, which included the use of long-range B-1 bombers flown from the US, are the first in a multi-tiered response by President Joe Biden's administration to the attack by Iran-backed militants. I Photo: Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III, U.S. Air Force

The strikes, which included the use of long-range B-1 bombers flown from the US, are the first in a multi-tiered response by President Joe Biden's administration to the attack by Iran-backed militants, and more U.S. military operations are expected in the coming days.

While the US strikes did not target sites inside Iran, they signal a further escalation of the conflict in the Middle East from Israel's more than three-month-old war with Palestinian Hamas militants in Gaza.

Both the Associated Press (AP) and CNN reported that the bombing runs lasted only 30 minutes.

The US military said in a statement that the strikes hit targets including command and control centers, rockets, missiles, and drone storage facilities, as well as logistics and munition supply chain facilities.

US forces hit more than 85 targets spanning seven locations, four in Syria and three in Iraq, said the military, the New York Times also reported.

The strikes targeted the Quds Force - the foreign espionage and paramilitary arm of the IRGC that heavily influences its allied militia across the Middle East, from Lebanon to Iraq and Yemen to Syria, Jeff Mason and Timour Azhari also reported for AP.

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