By Al-Fassel | 2023-11-24

US fighter jets struck two targets in Iraq early on November 22, killing eight pro-Iran fighters in retaliation for repeated attacks on American troops, US and Iraqi sources said.

Sources say the US strikes hit Jurf al-Sakhr, an area that many observers call an operational base run by Iran-backed militants.

The Jurf al-Sakhr area, located north of Babil governorate in Iraq, is considered one of the most prominent areas under the control of armed militias loyal to Iran since its liberation from the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) in 2014.

The militias that control Jurf al-Sakhr have prevented its residents from returning, and are accused of turning the area into an operational headquarters, ammunition stores and large prisons, as confirmed by some politicians' statements, according to Al-Arabiya.

The US military "conducted discrete, precision strikes against two facilities in Iraq," US Central Command (CENTCOM) posted on X.

"The strikes were in direct response to the attacks against US and coalition forces by Iran and Iran-backed groups," CENTCOM added.

Iran-backed Kataib Hizbullah said the strikes killed eight of its fighters.

Hours earlier on November 21, a US AC-130 gunship struck the vehicle of Iran-backed fighters after they had fired a short-range ballistic missile at US and allied personnel, the US military said.

"We can confirm an attack last night [November 20] by Iran-backed militias using a close-range ballistic missile against US and coalition forces at [Ain] al-Asad air base, which resulted in eight injuries and some minor damage to infrastructure," Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said.

Ain al-Asad air base in Anbar province hosts forces of the US-led international coalition, a multinational force that is fighting "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) remnants.

Open secret

Between 2014 and 2017, Iraqi forces liberated Jurf al-Sakhr and surrounding areas from ISIS, but pro-Iran militias such as Kataib Hizbullah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Asaib Ahl al-Haq have since sought to establish their dominance.

Earlier in the year, reports said that these armed groups were blocking residents' entry to these areas, under the pretext that they had not been cleared of the remnants of war and that the militias were there to maintain security and to prevent the return of extremist elements.

It is an open secret that Iran-backed militias have established military bases in the Jurf al-Sakhr area, observers say.

Iran-affiliated militias are accused of turning the towns they control into military assets that they keep under heavy guard.