5 US troops, 2 contractors hurt in rocket attack as details emerge about strike at Iraq base

WASHINGTON — Five U.S. service members and two contractors were injured when two rockets hit a military base in Iraq, U.S. officials said Tuesday, providing few details about the incident. the Monday strike.

The officials said five of the wounded were being treated at al-Asad air base and two were evacuated, but all seven were in stable condition. They did not provide details on who was evacuated.

The missile strike is the latest in what has been a surge in attacks on U.S. troops by Iranian-backed militias. It comes as Tensions in the Middle East are rising but is not believed to be connected to last week’s murders of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and Hamas’ top political leader in Iran, in suspected Israeli attacks. Both groups are supported by Iran.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity about military operations.

In recent weeks, Iran-backed Iraqi militias have resumed attacks on bases hosting U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria, after a lull of several months following an attack on a base in Jordan in late January that killed three U.S. soldiers and left one series of US retaliatory strikes.

Between October and January, an umbrella organization calling itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq regularly claimed to have carried out attacks. These attacks were said to be in retaliation for Washington’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza and were intended to drive American troops out of the region.