Iran-Backed Militia Commander In Iraq Killed By US Strike
A commander from Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed armed group in Iraq that the Pentagon has blamed for attacking its troops, was killed in a US strike on Wednesday, the US military said.
A commander from Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed armed group in Iraq that the Pentagon has blamed for attacking its troops, was killed in a US strike on Wednesday, the US military said.
"(US) forces conducted a unilateral strike in Iraq in response to the attacks on US service members, killing a Kataib Hezbollah commander responsible for directly planning and participating in attacks on US forces in the region," a statement from the military said. It did not name the commander.
Two security sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the commander was Abu Baqir al-Saadi, killed in a drone strike on a vehicle in eastern Baghdad.
One of the sources said three people were killed and that the vehicle targeted was used by Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a state security agency composed of dozens of armed groups, many of them backed by Iran.
Three US troops were killed in January in a drone attack near the Jordan-Syria border that the Pentagon said bore the "footprints" of Kataib Hezbollah. The group then announced it was suspending military operations against US troops in the region.
Iran-backed militias have targeted US forces in Iraq and Syria more than 160 times since mid-October.
The US struck Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria last weekend in what it said was just the beginning of its response to the killing of the three US soldiers.
In January, a US drone strike killed a senior militia commander in central Baghdad, an attack Washington said came in response to drone and rocket attacks on its forces.
On Wednesday, Iraqi special forces were on high alert in Baghdad and further units were deployed inside the Green Zone housing international diplomatic missions including the US embassy, a security source said.
What the targets represented is not exactly known, but Syrian activists claimed they were all sites linked with Iran and Hezbollah. The possibility exists that in one case a gathering of commanders was targeted. Syrian state television showed ambulances rushing to the scene of a strike, where wreckage and debris lay from a building that was hit.
Israel, which has targeted Iran-linked military sites and convoys in Syria for years, appears to have intensified targeted attacks based on precise and timely intelligence, eliminating Iranian IRGC officers.
Just last week, a suspected Israeli strike killed Saeid Alidadi, a Revolutionary Guard senior officer, south of the Syrian capital Damascus. In a devastating attack on January 29, in Damascus, several top IRGC officers and operatives were killed. Reports followed that the Iranians, fearing more attacks began reducing their presence in Syria. The United States also targeted Iran-linked sites in Syria on February 3 in retaliation for a drone attack days earlier that killed three US soldiers.
However, Houthi forces in Yemen continued their attacks on shipping in the strategically important Red Sea area on Tuesday, firing at two vessels. Houthis, a large military force, have received extensive Iranian military support for more than a decade. The began targeting commercial and naval vessels in mid-November after Iran’s ruler Ali Khamenei called on Muslims to blockade Israel.
The US military's Central Command said the Houthis fired three missiles at the Star Nasia, which reported minor damage but no injuries. A US Navy ship operating near the Star Nasia shot down one of the missiles, Centcom said on X, formerly known as Twitter. It said the Star Nasia remained seaworthy and was continuing toward its destination.
Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency and British maritime security firm Ambrey reported an explosion near a merchant vessel off Yemen's port of Aden on Tuesday.
Ambrey said the southbound Greek-owned bulk carrier had been targeted while heading through the Maritime Security Transit Corridor about 53 nautical miles southwest of Aden, en route from the US to India.
The Houthi attacks have affected the free flow of good through the Suez Canal between Asia and Europe. The United States began launching attacks on Houthi military installations last month, with dozens of sites bombed by missiles and aircraft. However, the attacks have continued.
Ambrey said the second vessel, a Barbados-flagged general cargo ship owned by a British company, had suffered damage from an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) while sailing south through the Red Sea.
No injuries were reported. The ship performed evasive maneuvers and continued its journey, Ambrey said.
The owner of the Morning Tide, British firm Furadino Shipping, told Reuters the ship was currently sailing without problems, but gave no further information.
US Centcom said three missiles fired by the Houthis had hit the water near the Morning Tide but caused no damage or injuries.
Iranian government media on Wednesday simply reported the news about the attack in Syria and the Houthi strikes but mostly avoided the typical rhetoric about the power of their proxy forces.