The United States has responded to the Iranian-backed mortar strike earlier this week that killed two US personnel and a soldier from the UK and wounded several others.
US officials have confirmed that on Thursday, several retaliatory airstrikes were carried out on Iranian-backed militia inside of Iraq after a fatal mortar attack on Camp Taji earlier in the week that killed one US soldier, one US contractor, and a soldier from the UK. The US officials verified that several US aircraft were used to strike five different weapon storehouses in an attempt to prevent attacks in the future.
US Defense Secretary Mark Esper stated, “The United States will not tolerate attacks against our people, our interests, or our allies…As we have demonstrated in recent months, we will take any action necessary to protect our forces in Iraq and the region.” This follows suit with President Trump’s declaration at the recent State of the Union address where he vowed:
“If you threaten our people, you forfeit your life.”
Claiming that the primary target in these strikes was the weapons, a US official reported that they expect a lower number of casualties overall. Strikes were conducted in Al-Musayib, Arab Nawar Ahmad, Karbala, and Jurf al-Sakher; all in the region of Baghdad.
A statement from the Pentagon contained the warning that “These terror groups must cease their attacks on U.S. and coalition forces or face consequences at a time and place of our choosing.”
