Some US senators are calling for direct strikes on Iran in response to the killing of three American troops in a drone attack in Jordan near the Syrian border.
Three US Army soldiers were killed and at least two dozen service members were injured in a drone attack overnight on a small US outpost in Jordan, US officials told CNN, marking the first time US troops have been killed by enemy fire in the Middle East since the beginning of the Gaza war.
The killing of three Americans at Tower 22 in Jordan near the border with Syria is a significant escalation of an already-precarious situation in the Middle East. Officials said the drone was fired by Iran-backed militants and appeared to come from Syria
…
President Joe Biden vowed on Sunday to hold those responsible for the attack “to account,” saying that while facts are still being gathered, “We know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq.”
As of Friday, there had been more than 158 attacks on US and coalition forces in Iraq and Syria, though officials have described the constant volley of drones, rockets, and missiles as unsuccessful as they have frequently not caused serious injury or damage to infrastructure.
It’s unclear why air defenses failed to intercept the drone, which appears to be the first known attack on Tower 22 since attacks on US and coalition forces began on October 17. US forces at the outpost are there as part of an advise-and-assist mission with Jordan.
CENTCOM says a ‘number’ of US personnel are being examined for traumatic brain injuries, and one Iraqi soldier was wounded
…
According to the Pentagon, US bases in Iraq and Syria have come under attack 140 times since mid-October. The US has launched several rounds of airstrikes in both countries in response, including a drone strike in Baghdad that killed a deputy commander of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a coalition of Iraqi militias that’s part of Iraq’s security forces.