CNN
—
The US has beefed up its military forces in the Middle East after a series of attacks on US troops in Syria blamed on militias linked to Iran, the Pentagon said Friday.
A squadron of A-10 attack aircraft is deployed to the region ahead of a scheduled deployment. According to Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Phil Ventura, the attack aircraft’s deployment was accelerated several weeks after the attacks in Syria.
In addition, the US ordered a carrier strike group to remain in the region to support US forces from Central Command, which covers the Middle East, and a squadron of A-10 strike aircraft to the region, Ventura said.
“We are committed to supporting the defeat ISIS mission alongside a global coalition in Syria and are prepared to respond to a range of contingencies in the Middle East as needed,” Ventura said in a statement.
The George HW Bush Carrier Strike Group will remain in the Mediterranean under US European command, but will support US forces in the Middle East in the event of contingency plans and operations, Ventura said. Led by the nuclear aircraft carrier USS George HW Bush, the strike group also includes the guided-missile cruiser USS Leyte Gulf, the destroyer USS Delbert D. Black and the support ship USNS Arctic.
“Collectively, these actions demonstrate the United States’ ability to rapidly reposition troops around the world and underline that all necessary measures will be taken to defend U.S. forces,” Ventura said.
Last week, a series of attacks on US bases in Syria killed a US contractor and injured US personnel in the war-torn country.
The US has about 900 troops in Syria as part of its ongoing mission to defeat ISIS. But those forces, scattered across several bases in northeastern Syria, have become frequent targets for Iran and its proxies in the region, which can launch drone or missile strikes against US positions.
“Iran threatens to push the Middle East into regional instability by supporting terrorist and proxies forces,” General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, said in his opening address at the House Armed Services Committee hearing on Wednesday.
But the attacks on US forces in Syria have not changed the Pentagon’s determination to continue its mission against ISIS, even with the threat posed by Iranian proxies.
“We will continue to fight terrorist threats in the region or wherever we find them,” Milley said.
The first strike occurred last week when a drone struck a facility staffed by US personnel near Hasakah in northeastern Syria. The US attributed the attack to militias linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The attack, which killed a US contractor, also injured five US servicemen and another US contractor, the military said at the time. On Thursday, the Pentagon revealed that four other military personnel had been diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries (TBI) in the days following the attack. One of those servicemen diagnosed with TBI was transferred to Baghdad, Iraq for further evaluation and treatment.
In response, the US launched airstrikes against IRGC facilities near Deir ez-Zor, Syria. On Thursday, the Pentagon said it determined eight militants were killed in the attack.
But after the US retaliatory actions, militant groups in Syria launched a series of additional attacks against US troops in Conoco and Green Village in northeastern Syria. Three US servicemen were injured in the attacks on Green Village, including two with traumatic brain injuries.
The number of service members diagnosed with TBI may increase, the Pentagon acknowledged, as screening is not complete and symptoms often take time to develop.