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ABOARD A US MILITARY PLANE —U.S. forces struck and killed Iranian-backed proxies who earlier had launched a close-range ballistic missile against al-Asad air base in Iraq on Monday.
It was the first time a ballistic missile had been launched against U.S. forces in the Middle East since a surge in attacks began on October 17, and the first time U.S. forces have retaliated with a strike in Iraq. It marks an escalation from the previous attacks over the past month, as ballistic missiles can be much more powerful and carry much more destructive payloads than the rockets and drones used in previous attacks.
U.S. Central Command said the ballistic missile attack caused eight injuries to U.S. personnel and minor damage to infrastructure.
The Pentagon said American forces were able to locate an Iranian-backed militia vehicle and a number of personnel involved in the attack. An AC-130 gunship crew then conducted a "self-defense strike" in retaliation, killing three enemy fighters.
Iranian-backed proxies have attacked U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria at least 150 times since President Joe Biden took office, two U.S. defense officials have told VOA. More than 60 rocket and drone attacks against U.S. forces have come since October 17.
Most of those attacks were disrupted by the U.S. military or failed to reach their targets, causing no casualties or damage to infrastructure, according to the military. But a handful of attacks have injured dozens of U.S. military personnel, with injuries ranging from traumatic brain injuries to minor injuries such as shrapnel or perforated eardrums. Officials say those injured have since returned to duty.
One U.S. contractor at al-Asad Air Base in Iraq suffered a cardiac episode and died while sheltering in place during a false alarm for an air attack.
In addition to today's AC-130 strike in Iraq, U.S. fighter jets have carried out three rounds of strikes targeting four facilities in Syria used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and their proxy groups.
The Middle East has been a tinderbox since Iranian-backed Hamas launched a terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, killing at least 1,200 people while taking about 200 more people hostage. Israel's retaliatory strikes and ground offensive has caused thousands of deaths.
The U.S. has increased its presence in the region to protect the roughly 2,500 U.S. troops in Iraq and 900 in Syria and to deter malign actors, including Iran, the Houthis and Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed proxy militias, from expanding the Israel-Hamas conflict.
A spate of attacks from Iranian-backed militants in March killed a U.S. contractor in Syria, caused traumatic brain injuries in 23 military personnel, and wounded 25 U.S. military personnel, according to the Pentagon.
The Pentagon responded with air strikes against Iranian-backed facilities in Syria, much like the strikes carried out by U.S. forces in recent weeks.
The last time Iran or Iranian-backed proxies used ballistic missiles against U.S. forces in Iraq was in 2020 following a U.S. attack in Iraq the killed Iranian Quds force leader Qassem Soleimani.