The US military is conducting air strikes against a pro-Iranian group in Iraq in the aftermath of the deaths of two Americans and a Briton in a rocket attack, an American military source said on Thursday March 12. to AFP. "The operation is in progress" and notably targets arms stocks, said this source, who requested anonymity, without giving the location of the strikes. "This is the response to yesterday's rocket attack", another US official told AFP. "This is not a coalition operation, it is a specifically American operation". "Airstrikes targeted Hashd al-Chaabi positions in multiple Iraqi provinces, targeting logistics centers and drone storage units", he added.
"Punish the culprits"
The Hashd is a coalition of pro-Iran Iraqi paramilitary groups now integrated into the Iraqi state. "Kataeb Hezbollah is at least one of the factions targeted"he said in reference to one of Iraq’s most radical pro-Iran factions. "The strikes started at 1 a.m. local time (10 p.m. GMT) using various devices"added the other American official, indicating that he did not have details on the number of victims.
Defense Minister Mark Esper Warned Earlier Washington "Punish the guilty" after about 30 rockets were fired early Wednesday evening at the large Taji base, on the outskirts of Baghdad, which is home to soldiers of the international anti-jihadist coalition.
Two American soldiers and a British soldier were killed in this attack which also left 14 wounded American, British, Polish and others, five of whom are in serious condition.