U.S. Forces in Iraq and Syria Attacked by Drones and Rockets

U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria faced a series of drone and rocket attacks over the weekend, according to U.S. officials. On Sunday, at least five rockets were launched from the town of Zummar in Iraq towards a U.S. military base in northeastern Syria. A U.S. coalition aircraft destroyed a ground-based rocket launcher in self-defense after the attack. No U.S. personnel were injured in the incident.

The attack in Syria marks the first targeting of U.S. troops by Iranian-backed groups in the region since early February, ending a nearly three-month pause in hostilities. The renewed aggression comes just a day after Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al Sudani returned from a visit to the United States, where he met with President Joe Biden.

In a separate incident on Monday, U.S. forces shot down two drones near the Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq's Anbar province. U.S. officials attributed the drone attack to an Iranian proxy group. The circumstances surrounding the incident are currently under investigation.

Why this matters: The resumption of attacks on U.S. forces by Iranian-backed militias threatens to destabilize the fragile security situation in Iraq and Syria. The incidents also highlight the ongoing tensions between the United States and Iran in the region, despite recent diplomatic efforts to ease hostilities.

Iraqi security forces have launched a search operation to find the perpetrators responsible for the rocket attack near the Iraq-Syria border. "Iraqi forces launched a 'search and inspection operation' targeting the attackers near the Iraq-Syria border," the Iraqi Security Media Cell stated. The initial investigation suggests that the rocket launcher used in the attack was destroyed by an airstrike, though the U.S. military has not confirmed if it was bombed by U.S. warplanes.

The attacks on U.S. forces come after months of near-daily rocket and drone strikes by Iran-backed Shiite Muslim armed factions, which had halted in early February following deadly U.S. retaliatory airstrikes. The U.S. currently has around 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in eastern Syria on an advise-and-assist mission. The renewed aggression raises concerns about the stability of the uneasy detente between U.S. troops and Iranian-backed militias in the region.

Key Takeaways

• U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria faced drone and rocket attacks over the weekend.
• Rockets were launched from Iraq towards a U.S. base in northeastern Syria, with no U.S. casualties.
• U.S. forces shot down two drones near an air base in Iraq, attributed to an Iranian proxy group.
• The attacks threaten to destabilize the fragile security situation in Iraq and Syria.
• The renewed aggression raises concerns about the stability of the uneasy detente between U.S. troops and Iranian-backed militias.