The US military provided details of the raids it launched on Sunday in areas in Syria and Iraq, and at a time when Iran strongly condemned what it called raising tension in the region, Iraqi armed factions issued a statement stressing their rejection of the US presence in the country.

On Sunday, the United States announced that it launched targeted air strikes targeting "facilities used by Iranian-backed militias" on the Syrian-Iraqi border.

Officials said that the US military launched the attacks with "F-15" and "F-16" aircraft, and said that the pilots who carried out these attacks returned safely.

The Pentagon explained that these strikes were authorized by President Joe Biden in the wake of the ongoing attacks on US interests.

The United States blames Iraqi factions linked to Iran for the recent attacks on Iraqi facilities housing American personnel, at a time when Washington hopes to return to the nuclear agreement with Tehran.

"At President Biden's direction, military forces conducted precision defensive air strikes against facilities used by Iranian-backed militias in the Iraq-Syria border area," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a statement, adding that the strikes came in the wake of "attacks by Iranian-backed groups targeting US interests in Iraq." ".

"Given the continuing series of attacks by Iran-backed groups targeting US interests in Iraq, the President has directed further military action to disrupt and deter such attacks," Kirby said.

These strikes targeted operational facilities and weapons depots at two locations in Syria and one location in Iraq.

"These targets were chosen because these facilities are used by Iranian-backed militias participating in drone attacks against American personnel and facilities in Iraq," the Pentagon spokesman added.

Repeated attacks هجمات

An attack carried out by 3 booby-trapped drones targeted an area near the US Consulate in Erbil, in the Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, on Friday night.

US officials believe that Iran is behind the escalation of attacks with advanced drones, and the frequent firing of missiles at American personnel and facilities in Iraq.

Two US officials told Reuters that Iranian-backed militias have launched at least five drone attacks on facilities used by US military and coalition forces in Iraq since April.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi declared that the raids were targeted and were a proportionate response to a specific and serious threat...and "to protect our forces and our allies."

proper response

A Pentagon spokesman said Sunday's strikes constitute "a necessary, appropriate and deliberate act to reduce the risk of escalation, but also to send a clear and unambiguous message of deterrence."

On the other hand, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported on Monday that at least 5 members of pro-Iranian factions were killed in US air strikes on the Iraqi-Syrian border.

The official Syrian News Agency (SANA) said, "The border area with Iraq in the far eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor was subjected to air aggression by warplanes after midnight, which caused the death of a child and the injury of 3 civilians."

These air strikes are the second American attack of its kind against Iranian-backed militias in Syria, since President Biden took office.

Biden had ordered limited attacks on one of the targets in Syria last February "in response to missile attacks in Iraq."

On the diplomatic front, the strikes by the United States come two days after Washington and Paris warned Iran on Friday that time was running out to return to the nuclear deal, expressing concern that Tehran's sensitive atomic activities could develop if negotiations dragged on.

Iran and its allies

In response to the US air strikes in Syria and Iraq, Tehran said that what Washington did in the region would destabilize its security, and that this would not be in its interest.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry said that Washington is still moving in the wrong path and must correct its mistakes and stop its interference in the region, as it described it.

She stressed that raising tension in the region is not in Washington's interest, adding, "The United States is on the wrong path, and the recent strikes are part of its arrogance."

For its part, Iraqi armed factions, described as loyal to Iran, issued a statement saying, "We will not remain silent about the presence of US forces, which is in violation of the constitution and Parliament's decision."

The "Sayyid al-Shuhada" Brigades said that from now on it will enter into an "open war with the American occupation" and vowed to target its planes in the skies of Iraq.

The brigades had announced earlier the "general mobilization" and said that they would use their missile power "to distances that the American enemy would not expect," according to the text of their statement.

For its part, the 14th Brigade of the Popular Mobilization issued a statement saying that these raids led to the death of a number of its members.