Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the “narrowly-tailored strikes” were a response to a series of nearly 20 assaults beginning Oct. 17, which he said had resulted in minor injuries to 21 U.S. service members. An American contractor died after suffering cardiac arrest during one incident, what officials have said was a false alarm of incoming attack at a U.S. base in Iraq.
“The United States does not seek conflict and has no intention nor desire to engage in further hostilities, but these Iranian-backed attacks against U.S. forces are unacceptable and must stop,” Austin said in a statement. “If attacks by Iran’s proxies against U.S. forces continue, we will not hesitate to take further necessary measures to protect our people.”
The airstrikes follow a warning by President Biden, who has faced increasing pressure to retaliate for the attacks on American personnel, to Iran’s supreme leader that the United States would act if further provoked.
The United States has for many years faced assaults from Iranian-linked militants in Iraq, where the Pentagon maintains a force of some 2,500 troops, and in Syria, where the U.S. personnel number around 900. The Biden administration has authorized previous strikes against Iranian-linked targets in Syria, including in March of this year.
The Biden administration has expressed strong support for Israel following the Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas, which killed more than 1,400 people, expediting shipments of munitions and other arms. It has also dispatched two aircraft carrier strike groups to the region in an effort to avert an expansion of the conflict. Officials are now urging caution as Israel prepares for an expected ground offensive in Gaza, where health authorities say the death toll has surpassed 7,000.
Austin said the strikes announced Thursday “do not constitute a shift in our approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict.”
Speaking at the United Nations earlier in the day, Iran’s foreign minister cited the plight of Palestinian civilians trapped by the fighting and warned that the United States would not be “spared from this fire” if the conflict in Gaza intensifies. Most worrying for Israel and the United States is the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, which is also supported by Iran.
Pentagon officials, speaking to reporters after the airstrikes were announced, said it was not immediately clear who, if anyone, had been killed or injured in the retaliatory operation, which they described as self-defense.
The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the Defense Department, said Iran was responsible for the recent violence targeting American troops but stopped short of saying that Tehran had directed specific attacks.
“Iran is trying to hide its hand and maintain some level of deniability, and we are not allowing that to happen,” a senior defense official said. “We hold Iran accountable for the actions of groups that it trains and equips.”
Amid the increase in violence, the Pentagon has sought to bolster security measures for deployed U.S. troops, announcing the activation of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery and the movement of additional Patriot battalions into the region.
Asked about whether the airstrikes announced Thursday could result in additional violence, the defense official said, “That would be a decision made in Tehran.”
“Our desire,” the official added, “is for Iran’s most senior leaders to direct their proxies and militias to cease these attacks on U.S. personnel in Iraq and Syria.”
Officials said the strikes were not coordinated with Israel.
