A MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle prepares to land after a mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Brian Ferguson)
The United States late on July 30 carried out a strike in Iraq against an Iran-backed armed faction in “self defense,” U.S. officials told Reuters.
The unnamed officials described the strike that targeted the central province of Babil as defensive, saying it targeted fighters who were preparing to launch a suicide attack drone that posed a threat to U.S. forces.
“This action underscores the United States’ commitment to the safety and security of our personnel,” one of the officials said.
Explosions were reported in the vicinity of a Kataib Hezbollah base near Jurf al-Sakhar, between the capital, Baghdad, and the city of Karbala. Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said in a statement that four of its members were killed in the blast and several others were wounded.
Early on July 30, Kata’ib Hezbollah, a key faction of the PMF, revealed that the U.S. strike targeted a group of drone specialists.
“The American enemy launched a treacherous aggression with its drones launched from Ali Al-Salem base in Kuwait, targeting a group of drone experts who were aiming to implement new technical experiments to raise the efficiency of reconnaissance drones, to monitor the borders of the holy city of Karbala and its external roads, in order to participate with the Iraqi security forces in protecting the visitors of the Arbaeen of Imam Hussein,” the group said in a statement.
“While we hold the American occupation forces fully responsible for the crime of shedding the blood of our sons, we warn the Kuwaiti authorities against continuing to make their lands a starting point for the American criminal approach towards our country by killing its sons,” it added.
Kata’ib Hezbollah also called on the Iraqi government “to end the presence of the occupation forces” and said that the representatives of the Iraqi people should have “a clear position that works to expel the Americans from the country.”
“The Islamic Resistance, Kata’ib Hezbollah, has always been committed to defending the oppressed and to being loyal to the blood of the martyrs. It will take the appropriate decision after consulting with its brothers in the Iraqi Resistance Coordination Committee,” the group concluded.
The strike came after a series of attacks hit Ain al-Asad Air Base in the western Iraqi province of al-Anbar, where U.S. forces are deployed, and the U.S. Conoco gas plant base in the eastern Syrian province of Deir Ezzor last week.
An umbrella group of several PMF factions including Kata’ib Hezbollah known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) was unofficially held responsible for these attacks.
The IRI began launching attacks against U.S. bases in Iraq and neighboring Syria as well as against targets in Israel last October in response to the Israeli war on the Palestinian enclave of the Gaza Strip and Washington’s unwavering support for it.
The group suspended attacks against U.S. forces around five months ago after the death of three American troops in a drone strike on a base in Jordan, reportedly upon a request from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to facilitate talks on the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq. However, it escalated attacks against Israel.
U.S. attempts to stall talks on the withdrawal of its forces Iraq was likely behind the recent attacks. The deadly strike on Kata’ib Hezbollah will now lead to even more escalation.
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attack us base in kuwait and warn kuwait authority for allowing us to use thier land to attack iraqi land, iraqi ressitance should attack to ill us scum not to just keep quite. us alwasy atack to kill not to damage . otherwise iraqi ressitance are usless .
remeber, it was “self defence” :) u.s. “defends” itself despite their mainland is 1000 miles away against “agression” of citizens with overthrown puppet governments.arab countries turned into even bigger shitholes then before. arabs are unable to unite i’m afraid. because they are: a, dumb b, lazy c, corrupted d, divided in religious disputes e, financially dependent f, cowardly g, opportunistic. sorry.
the us can’t abandon the theft of syria’s oil due to the triangle trade operated by mossad/cia: crude from syria is delivered to the kurds free of charge and the kurds deliver their own produced heroin or heroin from afghanistan or turkey to mossad that sells it to europe, thus providing a cash infusion to the kurds and to itself – remember epstein and ghislaine.
but what does the us get out of that deal?
iran can’t do anything big because of the fear of starting real war and this goes for hezbollah and ti’s goes for yemen and for resistance fighters in iraq.
tomorrow there will stand 10 new leaders/ specialists. all irakkis pro yankee must be shot. the yankee attact you, killed you, murdred 500 000 kids !!! and you let them occupie your country !!! they only understand a few dousend carbonised yankees and they run back to mamy.
sf using ai software donated by their langley masters to censor all anti yankeestan comments. i pity you fools!!!