Officials: Iran behind drone attack on US base in Syria

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WASHINGTON – U.S. officials accidental they judge Iran was down the drone onslaught past week astatine the subject outpost successful confederate Syria wherever American troops are based.

Officials said Monday the U.S. believes that Iran resourced and encouraged the attack, but that the drones were not launched from Iran. They were Iranian drones, and Iran appears to person facilitated their use, officials said, speaking connected information of anonymity to sermon details that person not been made public.

Officials said they judge the attacks progressive arsenic galore arsenic 5 drones laden with explosive charges, and that they deed some the U.S. broadside of al-Tanf garrison and the broadside wherever Syrian absorption forces stay.

There were nary reported injuries oregon deaths arsenic a effect of the attack.

U.S. and conjugation troops are based astatine al-Tanf to bid Syrian forces connected patrols to antagonistic Islamic State militants. The basal is besides located connected a roadworthy serving arsenic a captious nexus for Iranian-backed forces from Tehran each the mode to confederate Lebanon and Israel.

Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby declined to supply details erstwhile asked astir the study during a quality league Monday. He called it a “complex, coordinated and deliberate attack” and said the U.S. has seen akin ones earlier from Shia militia groups that are backed by Iran. But helium would not spell into specifics and said helium had nary update connected the munitions utilized successful the attack.

Kirby besides declined to accidental if troops were warned up of clip oregon whether the U.S. intends to marque a subject response.

“The extortion and information of our troops overseas remains a paramount interest for the secretary,” Kirby said, referring to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, “and that if determination is to beryllium a response, it volition beryllium astatine a clip and a spot and a mode of our choosing, and we surely won't get up of those kinds of decisions.”

Pro-Iran media outlets person been saying that the onslaught connected Tanf was carried retired by “Syria’s allies” — an evident notation to Iran-backed groups — successful retaliation for an onslaught days earlier adjacent the historical Syrian municipality of Palmyra. Israel has been blamed for the attack, but U.S. officials accidental America was not progressive with it.

“You tin see that the onslaught connected Tanf was an implementation” of erstwhile promises by Syrian allies to retaliate for Palmyra, according to an authoritative with the alleged Axis of Resistance, an anti-Western political-military confederation that includes Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and different groups warring alongside Syrian President Bashar Assad's forces.

The al-Tanf onslaught came successful a play of rising tensions with Iran. The Biden medication this week said planetary diplomatic efforts to get Iran backmost into negotiations to instrumentality to a 2015 atomic woody were astatine a “critical place” and that patience Is wearing thin.

The past large Iranian onslaught connected U.S. forces was successful January 2020, erstwhile Tehran launched a barrage of ballistic missiles connected al-Asad aerial basal successful Iraq. U.S. and conjugation troops were warned of the incoming missiles and were capable to instrumentality cover, but much than 100 U.S. work members received traumatic encephalon injuries arsenic a effect of the blasts.

The Iran onslaught was successful effect to the U.S. drone onslaught earlier that period adjacent the Baghdad airdrome that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi militia person Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.

Two months aft the al-Asad assault, U.S. combatant jets struck 5 sites successful retaliation, targeting Iranian-backed Shiite militia members believed liable for the January rocket attack.

_____ Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue successful Beirut contributed to this report.

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