According to Hezbollah-affiliated Lebanese media network Al Mayadeen, there have been reports of explosions near a US army base in Syria on Wednesday. The base is located in the Al-Omar oil field in northeastern Syria, under Kurdish control, close to the city of Deir ez-Zor. American troops have been present at this base since at least 2017. The base was targeted by a “swarm of suicide drones,” as reported by Egypt-based Bayan-gate news, marking the second attack of its kind this week on US bases in the region. This attack is believed to be in response to US airstrikes against Iranian-affiliated groups and their positions, according to Arab media reports. These airstrikes were a retaliatory measure following the deaths of three American servicemembers at a base near the Syrian border in Jordan earlier this week. A funeral held in Baghdad for an Iraqi Kataib Hezbollah fighter killed in a U.S. airstrike in Babil Province on December 26, 2023 (credit: REUTERS/THAIER AL-SUDANI)Retaliation in responseThe recent attack occurred shortly after a suspected American operation that resulted in the assassination of a Kataib Hezbollah commander in Baghdad. Kataib Hezbollah has played a significant role in the current escalation, with multiple attacks against US positions in the Middle East. They are suspected to be directly involved in the deadly attack in Jordan. Following the revelation that they were responsible for killing three US servicemembers, Kataib Hezbollah declared a cessation of attacks on American bases. However, they have been accused of coordinating assaults on US bases with other Iran-aligned forces such as Yemen’s Houthis. As part of the “Islamic resistance in Iraq,” Kataib Hezbollah is one of several groups working together to advance Iranian foreign policy interests in Iraq. This collective group has launched drone attacks on Israel and American bases in Iraq and Syria. The Islamic Resistance of Iraq has close ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, which has been targeted in American airstrikes.
