US strikes weapons storage facility linked to Iran in eastern Syria

WASHINGTON — U.S. military forces carried out airstrikes against a facility in eastern Syria used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, officials said Wednesday.

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The strikes by Air Force F-15E jets against the corps and its proxies was the second attack in two weeks, The New York Times reported. The attacks were in retaliation for rocket and drone attacks against United States forces in Iraq and Syria, according to the newspaper.

“This precision self-defense strike is a response to a series of attacks against U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria by IRGC-Quds Force affiliates,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “The President has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he directed today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests.”

Austin said two F15-E jets carried out the strikes, according to CNN.

“The United States is fully prepared to take further necessary measures to protect our people and our facilities,” Austin said in his statement. “We urge against any escalation.”

According to Sabrina Singh, the deputy press secretary at the Pentagon, U.S. forces have been attacked “at least 40 times” between Oct. 17 and Tuesday, ABC News reported.

President Joe Biden warned Iran leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last month that if his country continued to “move against” American forces in the Middle East, “we will respond,” according to The Washington Post.

U.S. forces responded with airstrikes on Oct. 26, according to the newspaper. American planes hit sites that were storing weapons and ammunition in the eastern Syrian town of Bukamal, the Post reported.

The U.S. has approximately 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria, according to the newspaper.