The US military announced Sunday (December 29th) that it had struck five bases in Iraq and Syria with a movement close to pro-Iranian Hezbollah, the Kataëb Hezbollah (Party of God Brigades). The shooting killed 19 people among the fighters, according to the Iraqi group. They intervene two days after the death of an American in a rocket attack against an Iraqi military base in Kirkuk.
These strikes carried out "Will weaken Kataëb Hezbollah's ability to carry out future attacks against coalition forces", Pentagon spokesperson Jonathan Hoffman said. The latter said that of the five installations concerned, three were in Iraq and two in Syria. According to the Pentagon, the targeted targets were arms storage units or headquarters of this pro-Iran faction of Hachd al-Chaabi, a coalition of paramilitaries formed to fight jihadists and now integrated into the Iraqi security forces.
A few hours after the raids, four rockets landed near a base sheltering American soldiers, not far from Baghdad, without causing any casualties. Since October 28, this is the twelfth attack on an Iraqi military base where American soldiers or diplomats are stationed.
"A firm response"
Already on Friday, the movement had launched 36 rockets against the Iraqi military base in Kirkuk, killing an American subcontractor and wounding four American soldiers and two Iraqi soldiers. The projectiles aimed at the base with unprecedented precision. "The shots were aimed precisely at the area where the Americans are, near the meeting room", according to an Iraqi official. The United States had immediately promised "A firm answer" faced with the multiplication of attacks targeting their interests in Iraq.
Recalling that the Kataëb Hezbollah movement "Has close ties" with the Iranian Quds Force, in charge of the external operations of the Revolutionary Guards, Mr. Hoffman warned Iran and its deputies that they should "Cease their attacks against the forces of the United States and the international coalition and respect the sovereignty of Iraq, to avoid any further defensive action by the American forces".
"The United States and its coalition partners fully respect the sovereignty of Iraq and support a strong and independent Iraq. The United States will not, however, give up exercising its right to self-defense ".
The United States had called the Iraqi government in mid-December to " take measures " to end the attacks in Iraq against American interests. Defense Minister Mark Esper then voiced his concerns over the phone. " worry " to Iraqi prime minister Adel Abdel Mahdi "About what appear to be attacks on bases in Iraq where American forces or equipment may be found".
Attacks on American interests or pro-Iranian bases have raised concerns over what Iraqi leaders have been warning about for months: that their two American and Iranian allies are using their soil as a battlefield.
