WASHINGTON: US troops in northeastern Syria were attacked by a drone, a US official told Reuters, although there were no injuries according to initial reports.
This is the second attack in recent days against US forces in the Middle East as the region braces for a possible new wave of attacks by Iran and its allies.
Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Iran-backed Hamas, was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran on July 31, an attack that drew threats of revenge by Iran against Israel, which is fighting the Palestinian Islamist group in Gaza. Iran blamed Israel for the killing. Israel has not claimed responsibility.
The assassination and the killing of the senior military commander of the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, Fuad Shukr, by Israel in a strike on Beirut, have fueled concern the conflict in Gaza was turning into a wider Middle East war.
Iran has said the US bears responsibility in the assassination of Haniyeh because of its support for Israel.
“Initial reports do not indicate any injuries, however medical evaluations are ongoing. We are currently conducting a damage assessment,” the US official said on the condition of anonymity about the attack in Syria.
The attack took place at Rumalyn Landing Zone, which hosts US troops along with those from the US-led coalition.
Five US personnel were injured when two Katyusha rockets were fired at Ain Al-Asad air base in western Iraq on Monday, an attack the Pentagon blamed on Iran-backed proxies.
The United States has 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in neighboring Iraq, who it says are on a mission to advise and assist local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of Daesh, which in 2014 seized large swaths of both countries but was later pushed back.
US troops attacked in Syria, no initial reports of injuries, official says
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US troops attacked in Syria, no initial reports of injuries, official says
- This is the second attack in recent days against US forces in the Middle East as the region braces for a possible new wave of attacks by Iran and its allies
- “Initial reports do not indicate any injuries, however medical evaluations are ongoing,” the US official said
German parliament speaker visits Gaza
BERLIN: The speaker of Germany’s lower house of parliament briefly visited the Israeli-controlled part of the Gaza Strip on Thursday, the body said.
Julia Kloeckner spent “about an hour in the part of Gaza controlled by Israeli army forces,” parliament said, becoming the first German official to visit the territory since Hamas’s attack on Israel in October 2023 that sparked the devastating war.
Since the start of the conflict, Israel has drastically restricted access to the densely populated coastal strip.
In a statement shared by her office, Kloeckner said it was essential for politicians to have access to “reliable assessments of the situation” in Gaza.
“I expressly welcome the fact that Israel has now, for the first time, granted me, a parliamentary observer, access to the Gaza Strip,” she said.
However, she was only able to gain a “limited insight” into the situation on the ground during her trip, she said.
Kloeckner appealed to Israel to “continue on this path of openness” and emphasized that the so-called yellow line, which designates Israeli military zones inside the Gaza Strip, must “not become a permanent barrier.”
The German Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.
Germany has been one of Israel’s staunchest supporters as the European power seeks to atone for the legacy of the Holocaust.
But in recent months, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has occasionally delivered sharp critiques of Israeli policy as German public opinion turns against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
In August, Germany imposed a partial arms embargo on Israel, which was lifted in November after the announcement of what has proved to be a fragile ceasefire for Gaza.
Merz visited Israel in December and reaffirmed Germany’s support.
But in a sign of lingering tension, Germany’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday criticized Israeli plans to tighten control over the occupied West Bank as a step toward “de facto annexation.”
