US Military Strikes Iranian-Backed Militia Targets in Syria

The US has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against ISIS militants. (Reuters file)
The US has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against ISIS militants. (Reuters file)
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US Military Strikes Iranian-Backed Militia Targets in Syria

The US has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against ISIS militants. (Reuters file)
The US has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against ISIS militants. (Reuters file)

The US struck nine targets at two locations in Syria Monday to hit Iranian-aligned militias that had launched attacks on US personnel over the last 24 hours, US Central Command said.

No US personnel were injured in the attacks, but as of late Monday the Pentagon did not provide further details on what US sites in Syria had been attacked or what sites the US struck in return.

The US has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against ISIS militants. In February it launched a massive attack on Iranian-backed militia sites in Syria in response to a drone attack in Jordan that killed three US service members.

Since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in Israel, and Israel's large-scale response in Gaza, Iran-backed fighters who are loosely allied with Hamas have carried out drone and rocket attacks on bases housing US troops in Iraq and Syria.



Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
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Blinken Speaks to Israel’s Dermer about Humanitarian Situation in Gaza

 A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)
A man sits on rubble of a house destroyed in an Israeli strike at the Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza Strip, on November 12, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas. (AFP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken emphasized the importance of improving the humanitarian situation in Gaza in a meeting with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer in Washington on Monday, the State Department said.

Dermer updated Blinken on operational changes and policy decisions taken by Israel in response to a US letter sent in October, the department said in a statement on Tuesday.

Blinken "emphasized the importance of ensuring those changes lead to an actual improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza, including through the delivery of additional assistance to civilians throughout Gaza," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in the statement.