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On January 10, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), an umbrella group of Iranian-backed armed factions, attacked three bases hosting United States troops in Iraq and Syria.
In separate statements, the group announced that its fighters launched rockets and drones at the Conoco gas plant base and another U.S. base located near the town of Hemo in the eastern and northeastern governorates of Deir Ezzor and al-Hasakah.
It also said that a base hosting U.S. troops near Erbil International Airport in the northern Iraqi autonomous region of Kurdistan was attacked with “suitable weapons.”
The attacks were an act of “resistance” against “U.S. occupation” and a response to “Israeli massacres” against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the IRI noted in its three statements.
Syrian and Iraqi media confirmed that the three bases came under attack. However, the U.S. Central Command is yet to release any statement on the matter.
The IRI has launched more than 140 attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria since October 17, ten days after the outbreak of the war in Gaza, according to the The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
The U.S. responded more than once. Earlier this month, Mushtaq Talib “Abu Taqwa” al-Saidi, a senior commander of Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, was killed in a retaliatory drone strike. U.S. defense officials said that the commander was responsible for some of the recent attacks in Iraq and Syria.
Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba is a part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, which is recognized by the Iraqi government. It is also said to be a key faction of the IRI.
While the current wave of attacks on American forces started as an attempt to pressure Washington over its support for the Israeli war on Gaza, they are now seen as a part of older efforts by the Iran-led Axis of Resistance to push the U.S. out of both Iraq and Syria.
Following the assassination of Abu Taqwa, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ Al Sudani promised to start talks with Washington on a withdrawal from Iraq. If this happens, it will be extremely difficult for the U.S. to keep its forces in neighboring Syria.
