WASHINGTON: A US warplane killed several alleged militiamen in Iraq following they fired a short-range ballistic missile at the US and allied forces in the country, the Pentagon claimed on Tuesday.
Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Pat Ryder stated that they could confirm an assault last night by militias using a close-range ballistic missile against the American and coalition troops at Al-Asad Airbase. The spokesperson added that 8 people were injured while infrastructure was also damaged by the strike.
Ryder further said that immediately after the attack, an American military AC-130 aircraft in the region carried out a self-defense attack against a militia vehicle and its men involved in the attack. Ryder claimed that this self-defense attack resulted in several enemy killed in action.
US Strike Kills Multiple Suspects in Iraq
Earlier, a US defense official claimed that the US conducted two air strikes in Syria against suspected militia members on Sunday. Reuters reported that it to be the latest reply to a series of assaults against US forces in Syria and in Iraq.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had also made a surprise trip to Baghdad earlier after a visit to the occupied West Bank, Arab media reported.
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Since the start of the war in Gaza, a series of rocket and drone strikes have targeted army bases hosting American troops in Iraq and Syria. About 2,500 US troops are deployed in Iraq, tasked with giving advice to their Iraqi counterparts in the fight against the Daesh militant group in the region.
US defense official told the Reuters on condition of anonymity that one of the targets was arms storage facility in Syria.
