Nightly US attacks

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The US military attacked Iranian Revolutionary Guards (archive image), among others.(Bild: APA/AFP/SEPAH NEWS)

Following US attacks on positions in Iraq and Syria, the Syrian regime has reported the deaths of civilians and armed forces. According to initial information, almost 40 people were killed. Many more were injured and the damage was "considerable".

Both public and private property was damaged. As reported, the US military had bombed 85 targets in Iraq and Syria during the night in retaliation for the death of three US soldiers (see video above). These included positions of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and other militias allied with Iran. The Iranian government is in turn the strongest ally of the Syrian regime and at the same time Israel's arch-enemy. The Israeli military also repeatedly attacks targets in Syria and the Revolutionary Guards.

Iranian Revolutionary Guards (archive image)(Bild: APA/AFP/SEPAH NEWS)

Biden: Do not seek conflict
US President Joe Biden has already announced that the attacks will continue in due course. At the same time, he emphasized that the United States would not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. "But all those who wish us harm should know this: If you harm an American, we will respond." Since mid-October, there have been more than 165 attacks on bases in Iraq, Syria and Jordan where servicemen and women of the US Army and its allies are stationed.

The governments in Syria, Iraq and Iran see things differently. According to the Syrian Foreign Ministry, what the USA has done has contributed to fueling the conflict in the Middle East "in a very dangerous way". These were "further daring and strategic mistakes" by the USA, said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani. In Baghdad, the US chargé d'affaires was summoned to the Foreign Ministry and an emergency meeting was convened for consultation.

Syria: "Occupation cannot continue"
The Syrian military announced on Saturday that "the occupation of parts of Syria by US forces cannot continue". The entire territory should be liberated from terrorism and occupation. Around 900 US forces are currently stationed in Syria to fight the Islamic State (IS) militia. There are still around 2500 US soldiers in Iraq.