US retaliates for fatal drone attack; strikes Iran-backed groups in Iraq, Syria
Washington (PTI): The US has conducted major airstrikes on 85 targets in Iraq and Syria against Iranian Revolutionary Guards and affiliated militia groups in retaliation for a drone strike on an American base in Jordan last Sunday that killed three of its service members.
President Joe Biden and other top US leaders had been warning for days that America would strike back at the militias, and they made it clear it wouldn't be just one hit but a "tiered response" over time.
Biden said the US military response "will continue at times and places of our choosing."
"The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let all those who might seek to do us harm know this: If you harm an American, we will respond," Biden said in a statement after the US started carrying out such strikes on Friday.
Biden said this past Sunday that three American soldiers were killed in Jordan by a drone launched by militant groups backed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
Three US soldiers were killed and more than 40 personnel injured in a drone attack at a US base in Jordan called Tower 22.
Earlier in the day, Biden attended the dignified return of these brave Americans at Dover Airforce Base. He also spoke with each of their families.
"This afternoon, at my direction, US military forces struck targets at facilities in Iraq and Syria that the IRGC and affiliated militia use to attack US forces. Our response began today. It will continue at times and places of our choosing," Biden said.
According to US Central Command, at 4:00 pm EST (2.30 am IST) its forces conducted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria against IRGC Quds Force and affiliated militia groups.
US military forces struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft including long-range bombers flown from the United States. The airstrikes employed more than 125 precision munitions.
The facilities that were struck included command and control operations centres, intelligence centres, rockets, and missiles, unmanned aerial vehicle storages, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities of militia groups and their IRGC sponsors who facilitated attacks against US and Coalition forces, the CENTCOM said.
Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said these strikes were at seven facilities that IRGC and affiliated militias use to attack US forces.
"This is the start of our response. The President has directed additional actions to hold the IRGC and affiliated militias accountable for their attacks on US and Coalition Forces," he said.
"These will unfold at times and places of our choosing. We do not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else, but the President and I will not tolerate attacks on American forces. We will take all necessary actions to defend the United States, our forces, and our interests," Austin said.
The strikes on Friday were markedly more significant than previous attacks on Iranian-backed militias over the last several weeks, which have primarily focused on weapons storage or training facilities.
But the administration is threading a needle they want to deter and stop further attacks but avoid a full-scale conflict with Iran breaking out in a region already roiled by the continuing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, CNN said.
"We believe that the strikes were successful," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said.
Kirby said the US does not know now how many militants were killed or wounded. He added that US military planes were now out of harm's way. Lt. Gen. Douglas Sims, the director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday that the locations of the strikes were chosen "with an idea that there would likely be casualties" among the IRGC and militia personnel who use them.
B-1 bombers long-range heavy bombers that can deploy precision and non-precision weapons were used in the operations, a defence official told CNN. Sims said Friday that the bombers flew in a "single non-stop flight" from the US, "all of that enhanced by our Transportation Command and our ability to gas and go along the way."
Sims also said that the timing of the strikes was designed around good weather, in "an interest of ensuring that we're hitting all the right targets."
The US strikes hit facilities used by Iranian-linked al Hashd al Shabi or Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) in the Iraqi city of Al-Qaim, located in the western part of Anbar province along the Iraq-Syria border, on Saturday morning local time, according to Iraqi security officials and the mayor of Al-Qaim.
In a statement, Yahya Rasool, a spokesperson for Iraq's Armed Forces, decried the strikes as a "violation of Iraqi sovereignty."
"The city of Al-Qaim and the Iraqi border areas are being subjected to airstrikes by US aircraft, at a time when Iraq is striving hard to ensure the stability of the region," Rasool said.
Iran-backed militants have targeted US military facilities in Iraq and Syria over 160 times since October, and several Republican lawmakers had called for the US to hit inside Iran directly to send a clear message.
But administration officials have been clear that any response would be proportionate so as to not further escalate things in the region.
"We don't seek a war with Iran. We're not looking for a wider conflict in the Middle East," Kirby told CNN on Monday.
On Wednesday the White House said it believes an umbrella group of militants called Islamic Resistance in Iraq was behind the drone attack in Jordan.
"We believe that the attack in Jordan was planned, resourced and facilitated by an umbrella group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which contains multiple groups including Kata'ib Hezbollah," Kirby said.
He stopped short of assigning exact blame on Kataib Hezbollah, the most powerful Iran-backed militia in Iraq, saying it was not the only group responsible for previous attacks on US bases.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
