*electronic science*
ABC News reported, citing American officials, that American military strikes began in Syria and Iraq on Friday night, as part of a response to the attack that killed 3 soldiers at an American base in Jordan.
Fox News quoted an American defense official as saying, “The American strikes were from multiple platforms, and are the beginning of a long campaign to target pro-Iranian groups in the coming days.”
According to a field source in Syria, drones attacked the headquarters of pro-Iranian groups in the countryside of Al-Mayadeen and Al-Bukamal, eastern Syria.
Another source reported, “The march most likely started from the American base in the Al-Omar oil field in the Deir ez-Zor countryside.”
According to Iraqi sources, they talked about targeting an ammunition store belonging to the Iraqi factions.
Syrian television revealed at dawn on Saturday, February 3, that a number of people had been killed and wounded as a result of the attacks launched by American aircraft on a number of sites in the desert and the Syrian-Iraqi border.
The aircraft carried out 4 rounds of raids on sites of the armed factions in Deir ez-Zor, 3 of them on Al-Mayadeen and one round on Al-Bukamal, while reconnaissance planes are still flying intensively in the region’s airspace.
Syrian television added in breaking news, quoting eyewitnesses in Deir ez-Zor, that fire broke out inside an American base in the Koniko gas field northeast of the city following a missile attack that targeted it a short while ago.
These developments coincide with the announcement by the US Central Command (CENTCOM), in a statement, of launching air strikes in Iraq and Syria against targets linked to the Quds Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and its affiliated armed groups.
The statement confirmed that the US military forces struck more than 85 targets with many aircraft including long-range bombers launched from the United States, and the air strikes used more than 125 precision-guided munitions.
For his part, US President Joe Biden said that the US response to the Jordan attack, which resulted in the death of 3 American soldiers, began today, and will continue at times and places chosen by Washington.
“Last Sunday, three American soldiers were killed in Jordan by a drone launched by armed groups backed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Biden said. “Earlier today, I attended a tribute to these brave Americans at Dover Air Force Base, and spoke with each of their families.” .
On Friday, February 2, Biden added, “At my direction, American military forces struck targets at facilities in Iraq and Syria that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and its affiliated militias are using to attack American forces.”
The American President added: “Our response began today… and it will continue at the times and places we choose.” He continued: “The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world, but let everyone who might seek to harm us know what it means.” “If you harm an American, we will respond.”
According to Reuters, the White House announced on Friday night that the United States is not seeking war with Iran, after American forces struck dozens of targets linked to Tehran in Iraq and Syria.
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told the press: “We are not seeking war with Iran.”
Kirby confirmed that the United States informed Iraq before launching air strikes, on Friday, on three sites belonging to factions inside the country, minutes after the Iraqi army denounced the strikes, which it described as a violation of Iraqi sovereignty.
A spokesman for the White House National Security Council added to reporters: “We had already informed the Iraqi government before launching the strikes.”
It is worth noting that the American authorities said earlier that the American forces in Jordan were attacked by the Iraqi Islamic Resistance, and according to the Pentagon, this strike resulted in the death of 3 American soldiers and the wounding of more than 40 others.
Washington accused groups allied with Iran of being behind the attack and confirmed that it would respond, while Tehran denied responsibility and said that the “Islamic resistance” takes its decisions without referring to Tehran.
For its part, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack on the American base, noting that it targeted 4 American bases, 3 of which were in Syria, namely the bases of Al-Shaddadi, Al-Rukban, and Al-Tanf, while the fourth, according to the statement, was inside the Palestinian territories, which is the Zevulon naval facility.