US Vows to Protect Personnel in Syria after Deadly Attack

A view of the al-Tanf base in Syria. (Reuters file photo)
A view of the al-Tanf base in Syria. (Reuters file photo)
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US Vows to Protect Personnel in Syria after Deadly Attack

A view of the al-Tanf base in Syria. (Reuters file photo)
A view of the al-Tanf base in Syria. (Reuters file photo)

The United States on Friday said it would protect its personnel in Syria after the US military carried out air strikes against Iran-backed forces in retaliation for an attack that killed an American contractor and wounded five US troops.

Just a day after the deadly attack on US personnel in Syria, which Washington blamed on a drone of Iranian origin, sources said a US base in Syria's northeast was targeted with a new missile attack. US officials said there were no US casualties in the incident on Friday.

The latest violence could further aggravate already strained relations between Washington and Tehran amid stalled efforts to revive a nuclear deal and Iran's military support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"We're going to work to protect our people and our facilities as best we can. It's a dangerous environment," White House national security spokesman John Kirby said on CNN.

Although US forces stationed in Syria have been targeted by drones before, fatalities are rare.

The Pentagon said the US strikes by F-15 jets on Thursday targeted facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group that monitors the war in Syria, said the US strikes had killed eight pro-Iranian fighters in Syria.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm the toll.

Iran's state Press TV, which said no Iranian had been killed in the attack, quoted local sources as denying the target was an Iran-aligned military post, but that a rural development center and a grain center near a military airport had been hit.

"We will always take all necessary measures to defend our people and will always respond at a time and place of our choosing," US Army General Erik Kurilla, who oversees American troops in the Middle East, said in a statement.

The US strikes were in response to an attack earlier on Thursday by a drone against US personnel at a coalition base near Hasakah in northeast Syria.

Three service members and a contractor required medical evacuation to Iraq, where the US-led coalition battling the remnants of ISIS has medical facilities, the Pentagon said.

The other two wounded American troops were treated at the base, it said.

On Friday, the Pentagon said the injured personnel were in stable condition.

New attack ‘ineffective’

A US base at the Al-Omar oil field in Syria was targeted with a missile attack on Friday morning, according to Lebanese pro-Iranian TV channel Al Mayadeen and a security source.

Kirby said that attack was ineffective and there were no US casualties.

It is not uncommon for Iranian-backed groups to lob missiles at US bases in Syria after they are hit with airstrikes.

US forces first deployed into Syria during the Obama administration's campaign against ISIS, partnering with a Kurdish-led group called the Syrian Democratic Forces. About 900 US troops are in Syria, most of them in the eastern party of the country.

US troops have come under attack by Iranian-backed groups about 78 times since the beginning of 2021, according to the US military.

The US deployment, which former President Donald Trump nearly ended in 2018 before softening his withdrawal plans, is a remnant of the larger global war against terrorism that had once included the war in Afghanistan and a far larger US military deployment to Iraq.

While ISIS has lost the swathes of Syria and Iraq it ruled over in 2014, sleeper cells still carry out hit-and-run attacks in desolate areas where neither the US-led coalition nor the Syrian army exert full control.



Missile Exchanges between Iran, Israel Turn Lebanese Skies into Aerial Frontline

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, early Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP)
Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, early Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP)
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Missile Exchanges between Iran, Israel Turn Lebanese Skies into Aerial Frontline

Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, early Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP)
Israeli air defense system fires to intercept missiles during an Iranian attack over Tel Aviv, Israel, early Wednesday, June 18, 2025. (AP)

Lebanese skies have turned into a daily theater of missiles streaking across between Iran and Israel, with the country’s geography making it a frontline in their aerial confrontation.

Missiles launched towards Israeli cities like Haifa and Tel Aviv must begin their descent trajectory over Lebanon, forcing Israeli air defense systems to intercept the threats near Lebanon’s southern and eastern borders.

Since Friday night, Lebanese people have witnessed a variety of projectiles, ranging from Iranian missiles and drones to Israeli air defense rockets, intersecting mid-air near Lebanon’s airspace.

Some fly in droves over Lebanese territory, others collide in the sky, while others veer off course, leaving fiery trails visible above the country.

Israeli interception launches come from multiple locations: the Mediterranean Sea to the west, the Golan Heights to the east, and central and northern Israel south of Lebanon.

Military and strategic affairs researcher Mustafa Asaad said Iranian forces have employed about 13 different types of missiles and projectiles in their attacks since last Friday.

In response, Israel is deploying five separate air defense systems operating at various altitudes.

Asaad explained that each missile type follows distinct flight paths and heights. Some travel at fixed altitudes, others maneuver to evade interception, and some even breach the atmosphere altogether.

This complex choreography aims to allow a few missiles, typically two or three, to bypass Israel’s air defenses and reach their targets.

Asaad added that Lebanese observers tend to see the missiles more clearly because they witness the final descent phase, when projectiles begin their downward trajectory toward targets.

While drones are rarely visible to the naked eye except when intercepted, Lebanese people in the south and to a lesser extent in Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and Mount Lebanon frequently observe Iranian projectiles in flight.

Asaad explained this visibility occurs because these projectiles are often in their final stages, descending toward impact. “What we see are mostly medium-range missiles flying at altitudes low enough to be visible at night,” he said.

In contrast, missiles flying at higher altitudes become visible only during their final drop or when intercepted by Israeli air defenses, producing distinct explosions resembling stars or meteors. Missiles in these higher atmospheric layers are typically targeted by Israel’s missile defense systems.

In recent days, residents in southern Lebanon have witnessed several Iranian missiles descending in “convoy-like” formations toward Israel.

Some estimates suggest these projectiles’ warheads may split into two, four, or six parts when hit by Israeli interceptors, usually targeting the missile’s main body, creating the illusion of multiple missiles traveling together.

However, Asaad cast doubt on this theory, saying, “There is no evidence that Iran possesses such technology.”

He explained that the missiles observed in images are single-warhead ballistic missiles launched from a single platform, flying closely in a group along the same trajectory.

Asaad noted that Tehran’s missile arsenal does not yet match the sophistication of Russia’s recent systems, some of which were used in a major strike on Ukraine two weeks ago and featured advanced defenses like decoy flares designed to confuse air defenses.