US troops in Syria come under ‘indirect fire attack’

U.S. forces in eastern Syria came under indirect fire on Saturday, though no injuries or casualties have been reported, according to Reuters.

A U.S. defense official told Reuters that that the attack occurred in Conoco, Syria. Though no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, it is believed to have been part of a campaign carried out by Iranian-backed militias.

The news services notes that this is the most recent in a spate of attacks on U.S. personnel in Syria and Iraq.

Last Thursday, rockets landed near the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, causing some damage in the area. The day before that, over a dozen rockets struck a base housing U.S. troops in Iraq and resulted in minor injuries.

Iraqi militia groups aligned with Iran — Kata’ib Hezbollah (KH) and Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS) — have vowed to attack U.S. forces in both Iraq and Syria in response to airstrikes carried out on the Iraqi-Syrian border last month that targeted their facilities and killed four of their members. Iran has denied supporting these attacks.

“As demonstrated by this evening’s strikes, President Biden has been clear that he will act to protect U.S. personnel. Given the ongoing series of attacks by Iran-backed groups targeting U.S. interests in Iraq, the President directed further military action to disrupt and deter such attacks,” the Pentagon said in a statement at the time.