(PatriotPostNews.com) – Amid ongoing tensions between the United States and Iraq, the American military continues initiating air strikes in response to attacks brought against their bases in the region.
Lloyd Austin, Secretary of Defense, announced that the military had launched its most recent attacks in Iraq on January 23, maintaining its active response to attacks from Iran-supported militia groups. The United States’ most recent strike came days after what the Pentagon described as a “larger-scale” incident than others, in which missiles struck an American base in Iraq and personnel were injured.
Austin’s statement specified that the American military’s response was “necessary and proportionate” to the attacks against United States bases and personnel stationed in Syria and Iraq. The most recent strike was launched against three separate facilities that are being used by the Kataib Hezbollah and “other Iran-affiliated groups.”
The attack from the United States “targeted” the group’s headquarters as well as locations used to train for rocket and missile strikes, according to the United States Central Command.
The attack which prompted the latest air strike resulted in damage to “noncritical facilities” and injured four personnel members, deputy press secretary for the Pentagon, Sabrina Singh, said on January 22. All injured service members have since been cleared for and returned to duty.
Since the beginning of the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, more than 150 attacks on American soldiers and bases in Syria and Iraq have occurred. The conflict in the Middle East triggered attacks on commercial shipping in the region, causing concern that the war will escalate and expand to involve Western nations.
The United States maintains that the war is limited to the Gaza Strip while continuing to respond to attacks on bases in the region. Austin said in his recent statement that the White House and Department of Defense “will not hesitate” to engage as necessary with hostility but added that the government’s intent is not to “escalate” the conflict.
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