The United States military carried out an airstrike in Iraq on Tuesday night, targeting unspecified combatants attempting to launch a one-way attack drone, according to officials. The operation, which took place near Baghdad, comes after a series of attacks on American positions in Iraq and Syria in recent days, The Washington Post reports.

THE PREVIOUS NIGHT, THE US STRUCK IRAQ

Reports now indicate that the U.S. airstrike struck the headquarters of the armored units of the Popular Mobilization Forces in Babylon.

The jets took off from a base in Jordan and entered Iraq through Jordanian airspace.

This… pic.twitter.com/mb5W8y2e0Q

— Megatron (@Megatron_ron) April 20, 2024

 This airstrike marks the end of months of relative calm between US forces and Iran-supported militias in the region. US officials disclosed that the strike occurred in Musayib, a town south of Baghdad, but provided few additional details. A defense official stated, "Based on recent attacks in Iraq and Syria, US military officials assessed that the activity constituted a threat to American and coalition forces. This action underscores the United States' commitment to the safety and security of our personnel. We maintain the inherent right to self-defense and will not hesitate to take appropriate action."

According to another defense official, the airstrike followed three attacks on US forces in the past week. On Thursday, two rockets targeted al-Asad Air Base in Iraq, while another struck on or near a US outpost in Syria. The following day, two additional rockets targeted the facility in Syria, known as Mission Support Site Euphrates. No damage or injuries were reported in any of these incidents.

The recent escalation comes amid ongoing tensions in the region, with US officials expressing concern that Israel's war in Gaza could potentially spill over into other parts of the Middle East where Iran wields considerable influence. Earlier on Tuesday, Israel carried out an airstrike in a busy neighborhood on the outskirts of Beirut, killing a senior Hezbollah commander.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, speaking to reporters after meeting with officials in the Philippines, expressed hope for a diplomatic resolution to avoid a full-blown conflict. However, he affirmed that the United States would defend Israel if attacked by Hezbollah, stating, "We've been clear about that."

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin says, "I don't think war is inevitable," when asked about Israel and its wider operations in the Middle East.#Israel #Lebanon #Hezbollah #Hamas #US

Read more: https://t.co/vnfz8bap07 pic.twitter.com/QkoVGbSQBB

— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) July 31, 2024

The recent violence follows a period of increased attacks on US military positions in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan by Iranian-backed groups in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel. US officials have linked these various groups, including the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah in Lebanon, to an Iranian-supported network.

In February, after at least 165 attacks on US forces, the Biden administration approved airstrikes in response to the deaths of three US soldiers killed in a one-way drone strike on their base in Jordan.

The latest airstrike in Iraq comes as US and Iraqi officials are in negotiations regarding a possible withdrawal of at least some of the approximately 2,500 US troops currently stationed in Iraq. An additional 900 troops are based in Syria who rely on personnel in Iraq for logistical support to counter the Islamic State.

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At least 12 pro-Iranian militia members were killed in an alleged Israeli airstrike on a copper plant in northern Syria early Monday morning, according to reports from Arab media outlets.

The Syrian army reported that around midnight, missiles were launched from the southeast, striking multiple sites in the Aleppo region. The statement said the attack resulted in several casualties and caused significant damage at the locations targeted.

One of the sites hit was a copper factory in the town of Hayyan in northern Aleppo province, an area controlled by pro-Iranian militias made up of Syrian and foreign fighters. A large fire broke out at the plant following the strike, according to a journalist affiliated with the Assad regime who reported ambulances and fire trucks rushing to the scene.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group aligned with the opposition to the regime, corroborated that a series of explosions rocked Hayyan after a missile hit the copper factory there. The observatory said at least 12 militia members were killed in the alleged Israeli attack.

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Israel has eliminated a senior Hezbollah field commander in southern Lebanon, the military announced Wednesday.

Hussain Ibrahim Mekky was responsible for various acts of terrorism against the Israeli home front, the IDF said, adding that he previously served as the commander of Hezbollah's forces in the coastal region.

Video: IAF eliminates Hezbollah field commander / Credit: IDF Spokesperson's Unit

Makki was targeted while driving near Tyre, according to the IDF.

Over the past seven months, over 30 Hezbollah commanders have been killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, per military data. The latest strike occurred hours after a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hit a military post near the border, killing one civilian and wounding five soldiers.

Since the Oct. 7 Hamas onslaught, Hezbollah has been launching nearly-daily attacks on Israeli towns near the Lebanese border.

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Syria accused Israel of striking an airport in Aleppo, in the country's northwest, on Monday morning.

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"Today early in the morning, at 04:30, the Israeli enemy carried out an air attack on the airport in Aleppo, from the Mediterranean Sea. As a result of the attack, the airport was put out of service," the official Syrian news agency SANA said.

Last Monday, the Israel Air Force allegedly struck Iranian militia targets near the Syrian capital of Damascus, with reports that at least two operatives were killed and one soldier wounded.

The two killed operatives were working with the Iranian militias, but their nationalities were not released, during a shipment of Hezbollah weapons and air defense systems, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Alleged Israeli attacks regularly hit targets in Syria, usually overnight, although Jerusalem rarely acknowledges them.

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Five terrorists died overnight Tuesday in an explosion at a base in Lebanon belonging to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, according to Arabic-language media.

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The reports attributed the blast to Israeli airstrikes in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon, close to the border with Syria. Jerusalem denied any involvement.

The PFLP-GC broke away from the better-known Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine in 1968.

The blast comes after Israeli jets on Sunday night reportedly struck targets in Damascus, causing damage but no injuries. The airstrikes were the first in Syria attributed to Jerusalem since the targeting on May 2 of Aleppo International Airport.

While the IDF rarely comments on specific operations, it has conducted hundreds of sorties over the past decade with a view to preventing Iran and its proxies from establishing a permanent military footprint in Syria.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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Syria accused Israel early Sunday of hitting several sites in the Homs province early, wounding five soldiers, state media reported.

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It marked the ninth time Israel was accused of striking targets in Syria since the beginning of the year, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition-linked war monitor.

State news agency SANA, citing military sources, said the strikes had targeted sites in the city of Homs and the surrounding countryside. Syrian air defenses intercepted the missiles and shot down some of them, it said.

The observatory reported that the missiles targeted Syrian military sites and those of Iran-linked militias, including a research center. There was no immediate statement from Israel on the strikes.

Israel is thought to have carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of Syria in recent years, including attacks on the Damascus and Aleppo airports, but it rarely acknowledges specific operations. Israel says it targets bases of Iran-allied militant groups, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which has sent thousands of fighters to support Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces.

On Friday, alleged Israeli airstrikes hit the suburbs of Syria's capital city, Damascus, killing an Iranian advisor, the state media of Syria and Iran reported. Iran's state television reported Friday that Milad Heidari, an Iranian military adviser, was killed during what it called a "criminal strike" by Israel.

Iranian state media reported Sunday that another Revolutionary Guard advisor who was wounded in Friday's strike succumbed to his wounds. Iran's state TV identified the adviser as Meghdad Mahghani, adding that his funeral would be held Sunday in Damascus.

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Satellite imagery of the Syrian commercial Mediterranean port at Latakia shows the aftermath of an airstrike on Tuesday attributed to Israel, and of "astonishingly precise" attacks, The War Zone reported on Wednesday.

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Analyzing images provided of the port from Planet Labs, the report noted that the strikes, which targeted arms and munitions shipments according to the report, sparked a large fire at the facility, which required several hours to bring under control by local firefighters.

"The satellite image shows damage to multiple shipping containers, seemingly as the result of four separate weapons impacts in different parts of the facility," the report stated.

"As of today, palls of smoke were still visible overhead the port, although the overall damage appeared to be generally restricted to the container terminal itself, with no apparent harm done to the area immediately surrounding the port. Surprisingly little is visible in terms of cratering, too. The attack looks like it was astonishingly precise, striking individual or small groups of containers only," it said.

Aftermath of Israel's bombardment of Syrian port seen in satellite imagery:https://t.co/TdwvoZFCng

— The War Zone (@thewarzonewire) December 30, 2021

Former Israeli national security adviser Chuck Freilich told The Wall Street Journal that "If the strikes in Latakia were, indeed, carried out by Israel, they were presumably designed mostly to prevent the buildup of [the] Iranian's capabilities in Syria," adding that "there is a secondary benefit of reminding the Iranians that Israel can strike at any time."

On Tuesday, Syrian state media said an Israeli missile strike on the container yard of Syria's main commercial port caused fires and extensive damage.

Reprinted with permission from JNS.org.

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An overnight airstrike attributed to Israel caused massive material damage early Tuesday to buildings at the Syrian port of Latakia, the state-run SANA news reported.

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According to Israel's N12 news site, Syrian reports claimed that the country's air defense intercepted fired by Israeli aircraft.

A Syrian military official announced that at 3:21 a.m. Tuesday, "the "Israeli enemy carried out a missile airstrike from the Mediterranean Sea, west of Latakia, on a container platform at the Latakia trade port."

The strike hit containers in the port, setting off a fire. There were no reports of wounded.

Israel has allegedly carried out hundreds of strikes since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, although it seldom directly acknowledges responsibility for them. Israel says it will not allow a build-up of Iranian influence in the country, including foreign militias funded by Tehran.

Earlier this month, a similar strike hit Latakia, causing fires but no casualties, according to reports. N12 noted that Latakia is considered a stronghold of the family of Syrian President Bashar Assad and the Alawite sect in Syria.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the incident was the first attack on the Latakia port since the start of the conflict.

i24NEWS contributed to this report

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Syria's military said Israeli warplanes fired missiles on the port of the coastal city of Latakia early Tuesday without inflicting any human losses.

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Syrian state TV reported that five explosions were heard in the port and a huge fire erupted in the containers' area. The governor of the Latakia province, Amer Ismail Hilal, said that firefighting teams were able to control the blaze.

It was a rare attack on the port of Latakia, a vital facility where much of Syria's imports are brought into the war-torn country.

Israel continues its campaign against Iran and #Hezbollah as it reportedly targeted the port of Latakia with airstrikes this evening. #Syria pic.twitter.com/VZosq0b3xQ

— Joe Truzman (@JoeTruzman) December 7, 2021

According to Israel's Kan 11 News, weapons earmarked for Hezbollah were being stored in the containers.

On Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said, "We are pushing back the evil forces of the region day and night; we won't stop for one second."

He added: "We do this almost on a daily basis. We will continue to act against destructive forces. We will persist, we will never grow weary."

Israel has staged hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled Syria over the years but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations. Some of the strikes in the past had targeted the main airport in the capital Damascus.

Israel has acknowledged, however, that it targets the bases of Iran-allied militias, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah terrorist group that has fighters deployed in Syria. It says it attacks arms shipments believed to be bound for the militias.

Hezbollah is fighting on the side of Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces in the decade-old civil war.

Israel says Iran's presence on its northern frontier is a red line, justifying its strikes on facilities and weapons inside Syria.

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Syria's state-run media said Israel carried out an attack on the country's south early Wednesday with two missiles targeting an empty house and causing no casualties.

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The missiles came from the Golan Heights and aimed at the building south of the capital Damascus, the state-run news agency SANA said. It said Syria's air defense systems intercepted one of the incoming missiles. The attack caused no casualties, the agency said.

Israel carries out raids on Syria mostly during nighttime. Wednesday's raid occurred shortly after midnight, SANA said.

Israel has staged hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled Syria over the years but rarely acknowledges or discusses such operations.

Israel has acknowledged, however, that it is targeting bases of Iran-allied militias, such as the powerful Lebanese terrorist Hezbollah group. It says it is going after weapons warehouses and arms shipments believed to be bound for the groups. Hezbollah is fighting on the side of Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces in the decade-old civil war.

Israel says Iranian presence on its northern frontier is a red line, justifying its strikes on facilities and weapons inside Syria.

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