US air strikes kill 11 in Syria after Iran backed drone kills contractor

The US military on Thursday mid night carried out multiple air strikes in Syria against Iran-aligned groups. The attacks came hours after an American contractor was killed, while five US troops and another contractor were injured following a deadly drone strike by the groups. Both the attack on US personnel and the retaliation were disclosed by the Pentagon at the same time late on Thursday. The attack against US personnel took place at a coalition base near Hasakah in northeast Syria at approximately 1.38 pm (1038 GMT) on Thursday, it said.The US intelligence community assessed that the one-way attack drone was Iranian in origin, the military said, a conclusion that could further aggravate already strained relations between Washington and Tehran.

BREAKING: US carries out an air strike on Iranian targets in Syria after 5 military members were injured and one US Contractor was killed from an Iranian drone strike.

This is a significant escalation.

pic.twitter.com/Dh9dWoGgm2

— Ryan Cunningham (@rycunni) March 24, 2023

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the retaliatory strikes were carried out at the direction of President Joe Biden and targeted facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). Iran-backed militia groups and Syrian forces control the area, which also has seen suspected airstrikes by Israel in recent months allegedly targeting Iranian supply routes. As per reports, the US raids, which a United Kingdom-based war monitor said killed 11 pro-Iranian fighters, were in retaliation for an unmanned aerial vehicle assault.

Meanwhile , a group of US Republican senators has urged the European Union to designate Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist organization.

A group of US Republican senators has urged the European Union to designate Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terrorist organization.
"The IRGC clearly presents a threat to the EU and our collective security."https://t.co/CjXd83gfRQ pic.twitter.com/qIfnVH6D2j

— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) March 23, 2023

The US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says Washington is mulling over new ways to strengthen its sanctions against the Islamic Republic.  Yellen said on Thursday the United States was looking at ways to increase the efficacy of its sanctions regime, acknowledging that the punitive measures had not resulted in the behavioral or policy changes Washington seeks from Tehran. "Our sanctions on Iran have created real economic crises in the country, and Iran is greatly suffering economically because of the sanctions ... Has that forced a change in behavior? The answer is much less than we would ideally like," Yellen told lawmakers in a hearing.