CENTCOM identifies more US troops wounded by Iran-backed attacks in Syria last month
Advertise Here
CENTCOM identifies more US troops wounded by Iran-backed attacks in Syria last month
Al Arabia -April 14th 2023
By: Joseph Haboush, Al Arabiya English
An additional 11 US troops suffered mild Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) from Iran-backed attacks in Syria on March 23rd and 24th, a US Central Command official told Al Arabiya English on Friday.
“This places the total wounded in those attacks at 25. Our medical teams continue to assess and evaluate our troops for indications of TBI,” said Maj. John Moore, a CENTCOM spokesperson.
CENTCOM said three attacks targeted US and Coalition forces in Syria on the evening of March 24th and March 25th. The US responded with airstrikes, killing at least eight Iranian-backed militants. A main Syrian war monitoring group said the US strikes killed at least 19 fighters, but this could not be independently verified.
US President Joe Biden ordered his military to hold off on a second round of retaliatory attacks against the Iran-backed militias.
An NSC official previously told Al Arabiya English that Biden had taken a deliberate approach using a variety of tools to reduce risk to US personnel and make clear that Washington would hold anyone who attacks Americans responsible. “The President will not hesitate to take action to protect US personnel and interests overseas,” the NSC spokesperson said when asked about the president’s decision to call off a second round of strikes.
Separately, three US servicemembers were in a convoy targeted in a drone attack reportedly carried out by Turkey. Ankara is believed to have been looking to assassinate a leader of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in Iraq last week. The US has not attributed the attack to any side. The SDF and Iraq both blamed Turkey, which considers the SDF part of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Maj. Moore, the CENTCOM spokesperson, told Al Arabiya English that the US was still assessing attribution and remained in contact with the SDF on the incident.
On Thursday, Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder reinforced Washington’s “longstanding relationship” with the SDF. They are not the PKK. We are partnered with SDF to defeat ISIS,” he said during a press conference.
Read more on the original:
UN nuclear agency’s board condemns Iran for the 2nd time this year for failing to fully cooperate 
Israel and Iran Seemed on the Brink of a Bigger War. What’s Holding Them Back? 
Iran says woman detained after undressing released without charge 
Iran offers to cap sensitive uranium stock to avoid IAEA resolution 
Families of American Victims of Oct. 7 Attack Sue Iran 
Iran hawks will hold less sway in Trump’s new government