3/24/23 - US Military Carries Out Airstrikes In Syria

The U.S. military conducted retaliatory airstrikes in eastern Syria after a drone strike targeting a U.S. base. Some Americans were injured and there was at least one death.

-The Pentagon reported, "Earlier today, a U.S. contractor was killed and five U.S. service members and one additional U.S. contractor were wounded after a one-way unmanned aerial vehicle struck a maintenance facility on a Coalition base near Hasakah in northeast Syria at approximately 1:38 p.m. local time."  

U.S. intelligence assessed that the drone that was used was Iranian in origin. 

U.S. Central Command were then authorized to conduct precision airstrikes in eastern Syria against facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). 

The U.S. has about 900 troops in eastern Syria providing assistance to Syrian Kurdish forces in preventing a resurgence of the Islamic State. 

In recent months, some of the bases have been the target of drone attacks. Since the beginning of 2021, there have been 78 such attacks.  

In a statement, U.S. Central Command leader Gen. Michael "Erik" Kurilla said, in part, that the U.S. "will always take all necessary measures to defend our people and will always respond at a time and place of our choosing. We are postured for scalable options in the face of any additional Iranian attacks."