For the third day in a row on Wednesday, pro-Iranian militias have carried out attacks on US forces and facilities in Iraq and Syria, according to reports.
The attacks were said to be confirmed and targeted the US base near Omar oil field across from Deir al-Zor in Syria, and also a US facility at al-Asad air base in Iraq. This is the first time that coordinated attacks have struck US forces in both Syria and Iraq.
The US-led coalition is in Syria and Iraq to fight ISIS. US forces in Syria work by, with, and through, local partner forces called the Syrian Democratic Forces. In Iraq, the US withdrew from most of its facilities in 2020, leaving forces at Asad base and in Baghdad and the Kurdistan region at Erbil airport.
The attacks on Wednesday, during the height of the heat in the afternoon, occurred after a drone attack was reported on Erbil around 1 a.m. The attack was supposed to be larger, with pro-Iran media saying some 20 rockets and three drones were involved. In fact, only one drone was apparently involved, and the airport closed briefly closed. It was targeted in April as well when a drone struck a secret CIA hangar.
There have been more than a dozen drone attacks this year and some 55 attacks using rockets and other means by pro-Iran groups since January. The Biden administration has carried out two rounds of airstrikes, one in late June, targeting pro-Iran groups in Syria.
The airstrikes in June targeted Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada and UAV facilities in Albukamal. These were in retaliation for a drone attack on Erbil near the site of the new US Consulate. In response, the pro-Iran militias shelled US forces at the Omar oil field for the first time. Then, on July 4, rumors said they shelled the US again. The US said there was no attack on July 4.
The pro-Iran groups followed up with attacks on July 5 on Asad base and then an attack on the Union III US facility near the embassy on the evening of July 5-6. Three drones attacked the Union III area, and the US used C-RAM, an air defense system, to shoot them down. This was followed by the drone attack on Erbil airport on the evening of July 6-7. Now, more attacks have occurred on Wednesday.
A high-level Iranian delegation, including members linked to the IRGC and intelligence units, was rumored to be in Baghdad on Wednesday. IRGC intelligence head Hossein Taeb was rumored to be among them, according to journalist Mustafa Saadoon and Iraqi sources.