US strikes alleged Iranian sites in Syria: Update

Adds comments from President Joe Biden

The US military carried out air strikes against facilities in Syria it said are associated with Iran-backed groups following the death of a US military contractor in a drone strike.

The US air strike, carried out in the early hours today Syria time, targeted sites used by groups affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, US Central Command chief, general Michael Kurilla said. The airstrikes were conducted in response to a drone attack on Thursday on a US military base in Syria, which killed a US contractor and wounded several US military personnel. The US intelligence assessed that the drone was of Iranian origin, according to the Central Command, which oversees US military forces in the Middle East.

Kurilla in testimony before a US House of Representatives panel on Thursday said that US military forces and installations in Syria and Iraq have been hit by drones almost 80 times since January 2021. The US attributes those attacks to Iran-backed proxy groups and has typically responded by force when US personnel or contractors were killed or wounded.

"The US does not — I emphasize, does not — seek conflict with Iran," President Joe Biden said today on a visit to Ottawa. "But be prepared for the US to act forcefully to protect our people," Biden said. "That's exactly what happened last night." The US counterstrike took place late evening, Washington time.

Kurilla and other senior US military commanders testifying before Congress this week stated for the first time that the Pentagon has prepared plans in case Iran upgrades its nuclear program to develop a functioning weapon.

"We, the US military, have developed multiple options for our national leadership to consider if or when Iran ever decides to develop an actual nuclear weapon," Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, general Mark Milley said. The military commanders did not disclose the options publicly.

The US military is concerned by the reports from UN nuclear watchdog the IAEA that Iran's stocks of uranium enriched to 60pc has increased substantially, giving it the theoretical capacity to manufacture several explosive devices, Kurilla said. Iran denies pursuing nuclear weapons.

Despite developing military options, President Joe Biden's administration considers diplomacy the preferred way to handle Iran's nuclear program, secretary of state Tony Blinken separately told the lawmakers earlier this week. But he added that the US and its allies in Europe believe that Tehran "is not serious about genuinely re-engaging on nuclear diplomacy."

By Haik Gugarats