BREAKING NEWS – Biden bombs Syria: US carries out airstrike on Iranian-backed militia target in retaliation to rocket attacks on American targets in Iraq

• US said Thursday it carried out an airstrike in Syria against a structure belonging to what it said were Iran-backed militia, two officials said 
• Attack was an apparent response to rocket attacks against US targets in Iraq
• Strike could be the first retaliatory move by the US following last week’s attacks and it appeared to be limited in scope, potentially lowering risk of escalation

The United States on Thursday carried out an airstrike in Syria against a structure belonging to what it said were Iran-backed militia, two officials told Reuters, an apparent response to rocket attacks against US targets in Iraq.

While the strike could be the first retaliatory move by the United States following last week’s attacks, the move appeared to be limited in scope, potentially lowering the risk of escalation.

Also a decision to strike only in Syria and not in Iraq would give the Iraqi government some breathing room as it carries out its own investigation of a Feb. 15 attack that wounded Americans.

The United States on Thursday carried out an airstrike in Syria against a structure belonging to what it said were Iran-backed militia, two officials told Reuters, an apparent response to rocket attacks against US targets in Iraq

A view of the scene after a rocket attack outside the international airport in Erbil, the capital of northern Iraqs Kurdish region on February 16

The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the strike was approved by President Joe Biden. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Retaliatory US military strikes have occurred a number of times in the past few years.

The rocket attacks against US positions in Iraq were carried out as Washington and Tehran are looking for a way to return to the 2015 nuclear deal abandoned by former president Donald Trump.

In the February 15 attack, rockets hit the US military base housed at Erbil International Airport in the Kurdish-run region killing one non-American contractor and injuring a number of American contractors and a U.S. service member. 

Another salvo struck a base hosting US forces north of Baghdad days later hurting at least one contractor. 

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