U.S. says airstrikes in Syria intended to send message to Iran

Hours after the U.S. strikes overnight, two U.S. military locations in northeastern Syria near large oil and gas fields were hit with rocket fire

U.S. military airstrikes in eastern Syria were a message to Iran and Tehran-backed militias that targeted American troops this month and several other times over the past year, the Pentagon said on Wednesday.

Colin Kahl, the undersecretary of defense for policy, told reporters that the U.S. airstrikes overnight on facilities used by "the United States will not hesitate to defend itself against Iranian and Iran-backed aggression when it occurs."

He said the U.S. decision to launch the strikes was based on both the nature of the militia attacks on August 15 at the al-Tanf Garrison, where U.S. troops are based in the south, and the fact that, based on recovered drone parts, "we believe we have Iran dead to rights on attribution."

Hours after the U.S. strikes, two U.S. military locations in northeastern Syria near large oil and gas fields were hit with rocket fire. According to U.S. Central Command, the rockets hit near Green Village and the Conoco gas field in Deir el-Zour. One U.S. service member was treated for a minor injury and has been returned to duty, and two others were under evaluation for minor injuries.

CENTCOM said U.S. forces responded by destroying three vehicles and equipment used to launch some of the rockets, killing “two or three suspected Iran-backed militants.”

The opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Deir Ezzor 24 said the U.S. airstrikes targeted the Ayash Camp run by the Fatimiyoun group made up of Shiite fighters from Afghanistan. The war monitor reported that at least six Syrian and foreign militants were killed in the airstrikes, while Deir Ezzor 24 reported 10 deaths.

Deir el-Zour is a strategic province that borders Iraq and contains oil fields. Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces control the area and have often been the target of Israeli war planes in previous strikes.