June 2021 United States airstrike in Syria

June 2021 United States airstrike in Syria
Part of the American-led intervention in the Syrian civil war
Location of Deir ez-Zor Governorate in Syria
Type	Air interdiction
Location	Imam Ali military base, Abu Kamal border crossing, Abu Kamal, Deir ez-Zor Governorate, Syria
Planned by	United States
Commanded by	Joe Biden
Target	Kata'ib Hezbollah Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada
Date	28 June 2021 (2021-06-28) (local time, UTC+3)
Executed by	United States Air Force
Casualties	4-9 militiamen killed[1]

The airstrikes on Al Hury, Syria, 27 June 2021

On 28 June 2021, President Biden directed airstrikes against Iran-backed militia groups close to the Syria-Iraq border.^[2] F-15E and F-16 aircraft were used to launch the attack in what the U.S. described as a retaliatory attack against U.S. facilities and personnel in Iraq by militia groups.^[3][4] Two operational and weapons storage facilities were targeted in Syria, the U.S. military revealed in a statement.^[5] Despite the U.S. not disclosing the information regarding the casualties in the attack, the SOHR stated that at least nine Iran-backed Iraqi militia fighters died, leaving many others injured.^[6] Iraqi militia groups aligned with Iran in a statement named four members of the Kataib Sayyed al-Shuhada faction they said were killed in the attack on the Syria-Iraq border.

Reaction

Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi condemned the air attack as a "blatant and unacceptable violation of Iraqi sovereignty and Iraqi national security".^[7] Meanwhile, Syrian state media (SANA) reported that an air missile attack after midnight on residential houses in the countryside of Abu Kamal, presumably by American warplanes, killed a child and injured three civilians.^[8]

Aftermath

Hours later, U.S. forces in Syria came under fire, following the U.S. strikes on the Syria-Iraqi border.^[9] Pro-Iranian militias fired rockets at the American base at Al-Omar Oilfield in Syria in response to U.S. airstrikes.^[10] The U.S. coalition responded by firing heavy artillery on Iranian-backed Militias Positions around Al-Mayadin.^[11][12] There were no injuries sustained during the attack, the spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve, Col. Wayne Marotto disclosed.^[13][14]

See also

• List of United States attacks on Syria during the Syrian civil war
• February 2021 United States airstrike in Syria

References

1. "US strikes at Iraqi-Syrian borders – Seven members of Al-Hashd al-Shaabi killed and military post destroyed in US air attack on Iranian militia". 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 1 July 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
2. "Biden orders U.S. airstrikes on Iran-backed militias in Iraq and Syria". Axios. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
3. "US airstrikes target Iran-backed militias in Syria, Iraq". AP News. 27 June 2021. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
4. "U.S. warplanes strike Iran-backed militia in Iraq, Syria". Reuters. 27 June 2021. Archived from the original on 31 January 2022. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
5. "US carries out air raids on Iran-backed militias in Syria, Iraq". Al Jazeera. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 28 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
6. "Death toll update Nine militiamen of Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces killed in US airstrikes near Syria-Iraq border". The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 18 July 2023. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
7. "US raids slammed as 'blatant violation' of Iraq's sovereignty". Al Jazeera. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 2 November 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
8. "Aerial aggression believed to be American on border area with Iraq in Deir Ezzor countryside". SANA. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 14 August 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
9. "U.S. troops come under fire in Syria after strikes against Iran-backed militias". Reuters. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 13 October 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
10. "Reacting to US strikes on Iranian positions Iranian-backed militias shell US military base in Deir Ezzor, causing material damage". The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
11. "US forces in Syria attacked after air raids on armed groups". www.aljazeera.com. Archived from the original on 3 November 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
12. "US Troops Come Under Fire in Syria after Strikes Against Pro-Iran Militias". Asharq AL-awsat. Archived from the original on 11 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
13. Choi, Joseph (28 June 2021). "US troops come under fire in Syria after weekend airstrikes". The Hill. Archived from the original on 3 July 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.
14. "U.S. troops come under fire in Syria day after airstrikes targeted militias". The Week. 28 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2021.