US hits hard at militias in Iraq and Syria, retaliating for fatal drone attack

By TARA COPP, LOLITA C. BALDOR and ABDULRAHMAN ZEYAD
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military has launched an air assault on dozens of sites in Iraq and Syria used by Iranian-backed militias and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. It is the opening salvo of retaliation for the drone strike that killed three U.S. troops in Jordan last weekend. The massive barrage of strikes hit more than 85 targets at seven locations, including command and control headquarters, intelligence centers, rockets and missiles, drone and ammunition storage sites and other facilities. President Joe Biden says the strikes demonstrate to “all those who might seek to do us harm” that “if you harm an American, we will respond.”