The fervor over coronavirus is so extreme that last night we exchanged attacks with one of the most hostile nations in the world and nobody seemed to notice.
The U.S. military launched multiple strikes using warplanes targeting multiple bases used by Iranian-backed Shia militias believed to be behind the rocket attack on Camp Taji, Iraq, the day before that killed two Americans and one British soldier, a senior U.S. military source told Fox News.
The launch began after 1 a.m. Baghdad time.
The U.S. military strike was “proportional,” according to the U.S. military source, and hit multiple bases used by the Kata’eb Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia that fired 30 Katyusha rockets yesterday at the Taji Base, which housed American and British troops. Of the 12 troops wounded yesterday, five are in serious condition.
“The U.S. does not want to escalate the conflict with Iran,” the U.S. military source told Fox News, but wanted to send a deterrent message, according to a message telegraphed by the Defense Secretary and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs during a briefing to Pentagon press earlier Thursday. President Trump authorized the strike earlier in the day.
The Pentagon released a statement following the strikes, confirming that they were conducted in response to the rocket attacks on Wednesday.
"Earlier this evening, the United States conducted defensive precision strikes against Kata’ib Hizbollah (KH) facilities across Iraq," the Defense Department said. "These strikes targeted five weapon storage facilities to significantly degrade their ability to conduct future attacks against Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) coalition forces. These weapons storage facilities include facilities that housed weapons used to target U.S. and coalition troops."
FILED - 01 March 2020, Lebanon, Beirut: Pro-Iranian Hezbollah militants hold flags during the funeral procession of five of their colleagues who were killed in clashes with Turkish army in the Syrian province of Idlib. At least 14 fighters of Lebanon's Shiite Hezbollah militia, including one Iranian, killed in an attack by Turkish drones in the countryside of Idlib and Aleppo on Saturday, a monitoring group says. Photo: Marwan Naamani/dpa (Photo by Marwan Naamani/picture alliance via Getty Images)