The United States military yesterday bombed three installations used by the Iraqi militia Kataeb Hizbullah, a pro-Iranian paramilitary group officially known as the Islamic Resistance Movement of Iraq and often called the Iraqi Hizbullah. And it also destroyed two anti-ship missiles in Yemen operated by the Houthis, militias also backed by Iran, which have continued to instigate attacks on US personnel and ships in the region. The order for the attacks, produced shortly after midnight in Iraq, was given by the President of the United States himself, Joe Biden.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin noted that the attacks in Iraq targeted facilities used by the Kataib Hizbullah militia and other Iran-affiliated groups in Iraq in Jurf al-Sakhar , in southern Baghdad; Al-Qaim, near the border with Syria, and another unidentified place in the west of the country.
The Pentagon indicated that its action comes in “direct response to the series of increasingly strong attacks against United States and coalition personnel in Iraq and Syria by militias backed by Iran.” “We do not intend to escalate the conflict in the region. We are fully prepared to take further steps to protect our people and our facilities. We urge these groups and their Iranian sponsors to immediately cease these attacks,” Austin stressed.
According to the Iraqi Government, these attacks within its territory violate the country’s sovereignty and will lead to an “irresponsible escalation”. For his part, Kataib Hizbullah’s military spokesman, Jaafar al-Husseini, assured that the group would continue to attack “enemy bases” until the end of Israel’s siege in Gaza and highlighted Washington’s support for the Israeli campaign , according to a post on the X social network.
The attack comes a day after Washington imposed sanctions on three leaders and supporters of Kataib Hizbullah and the Fly Baghdad airline for its support of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and related groups in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, the Treasury Department said.
Kataib Hizbullah has been blamed for several drone and missile attacks against US personnel in Iraq and Syria since last October 7, the day the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas attacked Israel. The most serious this year was on Saturday, when the militia launched multiple ballistic missiles against the US airbase of Al-Assad, also in Iraq, and from where it coordinates operations against the Islamic State .
In Yemen, the other front in the US fight against the “Axis of Resistance” against Tehran-sponsored Israel, the US military destroyed two anti-ship missiles of the Houthi rebels yesterday morning (Yemen time), after determining that they “presented an imminent threat to merchant ships and US Navy ships in the region,” US Central Command (Centcom) reported.
Both fronts – ground attacks in Iraq and Syria, and sea attacks coming from Yemen – have seen a significant increase in launches and counterattacks in recent days. Yesterday’s bombings are in addition to the attack carried out by the United States and the United Kingdom on Monday against eight Houthi rebel positions, which was the second joint operation by both countries against the group in response to its attacks in red sea
