Russia’s Stance on U.S. Strikes in Eastern Syria: ‘We Won’t Engage in Conflict

President Joe Biden from Poynter.org

F-16 aircraft from the US carried out the attacks without consulting Israel. Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov responded to Turkish fighter planes attacking Iranian militia sites in northeastern Syria by saying, “There are no concerns about Russia being drawn into the conflict.”

According to comments made by Peskov and reported by the Russian news agency TASS, “the conflict between Palestine and Israel heightens tensions in the region.”

The Kremlin spokesperson said “no” when asked if Russia may send troops into the Middle East crisis. He said, “In general, this increased tension and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict exacerbate tensions in the broader regional context, which is highly undesirable. At this time, there are no such concerns.”

US fighter planes launched a series of attacks against Iranian militia locations in eastern Syria before daybreak on Friday.

In response to a string of assaults by Iranian-backed organizations against US soldiers in both Syria and Iraq, the Pentagon said that these military operations targeted two installations in eastern Syria utilized by the Revolutionary Guards and associated militias.

“These precision strikes in self-defense are a response to a series of ongoing and mostly unsuccessful attacks against US personnel in Syria and Iraq by Iranian-backed militias that began on October 17,” said US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.

Austin made it clear that the only goal of these operations is to safeguard US soldiers in Syria and Iraq. He made it clear that they don’t signify a change in how the US views the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

Senior US officials were quoted by Reuters as saying that they carried out airstrikes with F-16 aircraft. It was highlighted that there was no cooperation with Israel and that the objectives of the strikes were storage facilities for weapons and ammunition.

These nocturnal attacks were effective in taking out an arsenal and ammunition storage facility used by the Revolutionary Guards and other armed organizations with support from Iran. It’s still unclear, though, if Iranian deaths were a result of these attacks.

The airstrikes took place at around 4:30 in the morning. around 1:30 GMT, in Syria, close to the Iraqi border town of al-Bukamal. An official said that they were carried out by two F-16 fighter planes using precise weapons.

U.S. Targets Iranian-Backed Militia Facilities in Syria After Ongoing Attacks on U.S. Forces in the Middle East

One ammunition and weapon storage facility in Abu Kamal, close to the border between Syria and Iraq, was the target of the strikes, which were conducted by one F-15 fighter aircraft and two F-16 fighter planes using precision-guided missiles. According to Ryder, the facilities were damaged by the attacks.

On Thursday, Austin referred to the President Joe Biden-ordered attacks as “narrowly tailored in self-defense” and highlighted that they are unrelated to the continuing violence in Gaza. “Iran wants to hide its hand and deny its role in these attacks against our forces,” he said in a statement, accusing Iran of being involved in the attacks on US forces. Austin also threatened more strikes if Iran’s proxies persisted in their attacks, saying, “We will not let them.”

The “necessary and proportionate” attacks, according to Biden’s message to Congress on Friday night, “were intended to establish deterrence and were conducted in a manner to limit the risk of escalation and avoid civilian casualties.”

“I directed the strikes in order to protect and defend our personnel, to degrade and disrupt the ongoing series of attacks against the United States and our partners, and to deter Iran and Iran-backed militia groups from conducting or supporting further attacks on US personnel and facilities,” Biden wrote.

According to a senior military officer, members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and associated militia organizations had already captured the two targeted installations. In a press conference with reporters after the incident, the official stated: “We know that there were persons on the target at various moments during the day. Again, we know that these were not civilians. In addition to IRGC soldiers, militia organizations with ties to Iran are also there.

Senior defense official: “Iranian fingerprints are all over this.” Iran was described as “the center of gravity” for assaults against US personnel in the area.

“Tehran and Iranian senior leaders are funding, arming, equipping, training, and directing a whole plethora of militia groups across the region, and they have escalated attacks against US forces since October 17, which is why we took self-defense action tonight,” the official claimed.

Although the Biden administration has previously launched strikes against militias, the US wants to make it clear to Iran and the militias that they won’t increase their attacks and start a larger battle in the Middle East during this tense period. The vicious terror strike by Hamas on October 7 set off the Israel-Hamas war, which has left the region on edge.

The US said earlier on Thursday that it may send a lot more than 900 troops to the Middle East. Additionally, the US has shifted an amphibious readiness group closer to Israel in the Middle Eastern waterways and two carrier strike groups to the eastern Mediterranean Sea.

The Defense Department is sending more air defenses to the Middle East in response to an elevated assault danger. A medium-range THAAD battery, a long-range Patriot battery, and a short-range Avenger air defense system are among such systems. The Pentagon refused to provide a specific arrival time or stationing location.

For its own requirements, the US is also giving Israel two Iron Dome air defense systems.