The Pentagon unleashed its first wave of bombs on Iranian-backed militias on Friday as clear skies provided precise targeting, hitting 85 targets in Iraq and Syria in a 30-minute strike.
Seven separate facilities – four in Syria and three in Iraq – were hit by the B1 bombers, which flew directly from the United States and refueled in mid-air.
Iraq was warned in advance, said John Kirby, spokesman for the National Security Council, but Iran – which supports and arms the militias – was not.
Douglas Sims, the director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the strikes were ordered because the weather was in their favor.
The bombs can be dropped when there is cloud cover, but the U.S. waited until the sky was clear, “to make sure we hit the right targets,” Sims said.
Explosions are seen in the Iraqi city of Al-Qaim: the site is believed to be a weapons depot for Al Hashed al Shabi, also known as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU)
He said the US wanted to avoid “unnecessary casualties” but expected militants would have been killed at the seven facilities.
Images shared on social media showed a series of explosions in the city of Al-Qaim: the first explosions from the US bombs, and then the secondary explosions from the exploding munitions.
Al-Qaim Mayor Turki Al-Mahalawi said the attacks hit three houses used as weapons depots by the PMU: al Hashed al Shabi, also known as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU).
The PMU is backed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and is believed by Washington to be responsible for many of the 165 attacks carried out on US sites and personnel in the region since October 7.
Two B-1 bombers flew from the US for the mission and hit seven facilities – three in Iraq and four in Syria – linked to the IRGC and Iranian-backed militias
Sergeant William Jerome Rivers, 46, of Carrollton, Georgia (left) and Specialist Kennedy Ladon Sanders, 24, were killed in the drone strike on a US air base in Jordan
Specialist Breonna Moffett, 23, from Savannah, Georgia, has been identified as one of the soldiers killed in the drone strike
Yahya Rasool, spokesman for the Iraqi armed forces, said the attacks were a “violation of Iraqi sovereignty.”
“The city of Al-Qaim and the Iraqi border areas are being subjected to air strikes by US aircraft, at a time when Iraq is doing everything it can to ensure the stability of the region,” Rasool said, according to CNN.
“These attacks are considered a violation of Iraqi sovereignty and undermine the efforts of the Iraqi government, making them a threat that could drag Iraq and the region into undesirable consequences. The consequences will be disastrous for security and stability in Iraq and the region.”
The US has not commented on the targets.
Mick Mulroy, a former Pentagon official in the Trump administration, said this The New York Times that the US strikes appeared to target Iranian supply lines, which run through Iraq and Syria.
Mulroy said he believed it was unlikely that many Iranian soldiers would have been killed because Iran had time to move its personnel out of harm’s way – likely a deliberate move by the US to avoid unnecessary escalation.
The New York Times reported that a location in the Iraqi city of Akashat was also hit, describing the target as a PMU command headquarters.
The PMU is just part of a coalition of Iranian-backed groups that call themselves the “Axis of Resistance” and claim they are attacking US targets in response to Washington’s support for Israeli action in Gaza.
The US has launched a devastating wave of airstrikes against Iran’s Revolutionary Guards in Iraq and Syria in retaliation for the drone strike that killed three US troops.
Analysts say Tehran is taking advantage of the chaos and warn that the US must walk a fine line between responding to the deaths of the three soldiers and plunging into war with Iran.
Joe Biden said Friday that the airstrikes were just the beginning.
“Last Sunday, three US soldiers were killed in Jordan by a drone launched by militant groups backed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC),” he said.
“Earlier today I attended the dignified return of these brave Americans to Dover Air Force Base and spoke with each of their families.
“This afternoon, at my direction, U.S. forces targeted facilities in Iraq and Syria that the IRGC and affiliated militias use to attack U.S. forces. Our response started today. It will take place at times and places of your choice.
“The United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East or anywhere else in the world. But let anyone who wants to harm us know this: If you harm an American, we will respond.”
Sims said the US was “very confident” in the accuracy of its attacks, saying they had been a success.
The operation was over within 30 minutes.
“Early indications are that we hit exactly what we wanted to hit, with a number of secondary explosions linked to the ammunition and logistics sites,” he said.
“We know there are militants using these locations.
“We carried out these attacks tonight with the understanding that there would likely be casualties associated with people who were in those facilities.”
Senator Jack Reed, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he supported the strikes.
“This was a strong, proportionate response,” said Reed, a Democrat representing Rhode Island.
“In fact, the 85 targets hit tonight mark a larger number than the previous administration. Iran’s proxy forces in Syria and Iraq have been dealt a major blow, and Iranian-affiliated militias in the Middle East must understand that they too will be held accountable.”