The U.S. military carried out a third round of retaliatory strikes against Iranian-linked militants in Syria on Sunday in response to what the Pentagon has described as repeated attacks on American troops stationed in the region since the Hamas attack on 7 October. 

U.S. officials have blamed Iran and its proxies for carrying out near-daily attacks on U.S. personnel “with the intent of killing them,” a senior military official told ABC News.

“We hold Iran accountable for these attacks, not just the militia groups,” another senior official said. The Pentagon said dozens of American troops were injured in nearly 50 attacks in Iraq and Syria. About 56 U.S. personnel were injured. The Associated Press reported that these injuries included traumatic brain injury.

American aircraft on Sunday targeted what was described as a weapons storage facility used by Iranian proxies in Syria and a training facility, the report said. The facility was reportedly being used by Iran-backed militants behind these drone attacks. 

The U.S. did not identify the type of aircraft used in the strikes on Sunday, which is a break from its traditional protocol. The last round of U.S. airstrikes in eastern Syria occurred on 8 November and 27 October.

“Iran wants to hide its hand and deny its role in these attacks against our forces. We will not let them,” Lloyd Austin, the U.S. secretary of defense, said. “If attacks by Iran’s proxies against U.S. forces continue, we will not hesitate to take further necessary measures to protect our people.”

He continued: “The President has no higher priority than the safety of U.S. personnel, and he directed today’s action to make clear that the United States will defend itself, its personnel, and its interests.”

Earlier in the week, it was reported that U.S. President Joe Biden called for F-15 airstrikes against these weapons facilities in Syria. There are about 2,500 American troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria under the auspices of preventing a resurgence of the Islamic State group.

TRENDPOST: Gerald Celente has long warned that maniacs are in charge, and they are taking the world to war.

Celente has also asked: Would the U.S. have invaded Iraq and Libya if the country’s chief export was broccoli? The U.S. troops in eastern Syria are stealing its oil. 

And the U.S. has illegally invaded Syria under the bullshit line that they are fighting ISIS. (See “U.S. ACCUSES RUSSIA OF HARASSING DRONES OVER SYRIA” 11 Jul 2023, “U.S. RAMPING UP CONFRONTATION WITH RUSSIA IN SYRIA” 18 Jul 2023, “U.S. SAYS RUSSIAN JETS ARE GRINDING FOR A FIGHT OVER SYRIA” 2 May 2023, and “U.S. BOMBS SYRIA IN RETALIATION STRIKE AFTER CONTRACTOR’S DEATH” 28 Mar 2023.)

Iranian leadership has said the claim by the U.S. that its forces are in the country to fight ISIS is nonsense and “only an excuse by the United States to maintain its occupation of Syria and keep looting the Arab country’s national resources, including energy and grains.”

U.S. troops have illegally invaded Syria since 2015 under the bullshit guise that they are there to fight against ISIS.

It is important to note that Iran is a Syrian ally and it is the U.S. forces that are the uninvited occupiers.

Turkey, a NATO ally, and Russia, called on Washington to withdraw its remaining military forces from Syria last year.

But Gen. Mark Milley, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was asked in March—during a visit to northeast Syria—if he thought the troop presence in the country was worth the risk.

“If you think that that’s important, then the answer is ‘Yes,’” he responded, according to Reuters. “I happen to think that’s important. So I think that an enduring defeat of ISIS and continuing to support our friends and allies in the region … I think those are important tasks that can be done.”

TREND FORECAST: We have long reported on the Middle East Meltdown and stress that it will not take much for the entire region to ignite. 

Reuters reported that a defective drone may be the only reason that the entire region is not on fire. 

The report said the drone was launched at the Erbil air base on 26 October and managed to penetrate U.S. air defenses. The drone smashed into the second floor barracks holding American forces. The drone, which was strapped with explosives, did not detonate. 

One U.S. official said the U.S. got lucky.

David Schenker, a former U.S. assistant secretary of state, told Reuters that neither Iran or the U.S. seem interested in a wider confrontation, but the risks are growing by the day. He said a major strike that pulls Americans deeper into the conflict is a “very realistic concern.”

These attacks have generally occurred on al-Asad airbase in Iraq and al-Tanf garrison in Syria.

The strikes on Sunday were seen as “significant escalation” by the Biden administration. 

Biden reportedly directed the operation on Sunday. 

An independent Lebanese journalist posted on X after the Sunday airstrike, “Joe Biden just bombed Syria. Isn’t it amazing how the United States can drop bombs on Syria, illegally occupy Syria, steal Syria’s oil, and scream about Ukraine’s sovereignty at the same time?”