U.S. Forces In Syria Targeted In First Attack Since Ceasefire In Gaza

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United States forces at Mission Support Site Euphrates, commonly known as the Conoco gas plant, in the eastern Syrian governorate of Deir Ezzor were targeted with a single rocket on November 29, an American official said.

The rocket did not hit the base, the unnamed official told CNN, noting that the attack didn’t cause any injuries or infrastructure damage.

The attack is the first since November 23. It marks at least 74 attacks on U.S. forces since October 17, when the first occurred in the wake of the Israeli war on the Palestinian Gaza Strip. The attacks lightly wounded more than 50 American troops. The U.S. responded over the last month with strikes against targets in Syria and Iraq. At least nine Iraqi fighters were killed.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), a coalition of Iranian-backed armed factions that emerged after the start of the war in Gaza, was behind most previous attacks on U.S. forces. However, it didn’t claim responsibility for the November 29 rocket attack.

After the start of the temporary ceasefire in Gaza on November 24, the IRI announced a “reduction” in operations against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria.

The ceasefire ended on December 1. In a statement released a day earlier, the IRI warned that it was ready to escalate operations against the U.S. inside and outside Iraq if Israel resumed its war on Gaza. This suggests that U.S. forces are about to face a new wave of attacks.

The U.S. maintains some 2,500 troops in Iraq, allegedly to train and advise government forces. More than 900 others are deployed in Syria under the pretext of fighting ISIS.

Talks are currently underway to renew the ceasefire in Gaza. The failure of the talks will lead to more escalation in Iraq, Syria and possibly other parts of the Middle East.

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