US Central Command said that “forces conducted a unilateral strike in Iraq in response to the attacks on U.S. service members, killing a Kata’ib Hezbollah commander responsible for directly planning and participating in attacks on U.S. forces in the region. There are no indications of collateral damage or civilian casualties at this time.” The US says it will continue to take action against groups that threaten Americans. Kataib Hezbollah is believed to be behind the attack that killed three Americans in Jordan on January 27. The US carried out one round of airstrikes last week in which 85 targets were struck.
The strike on Kataib Hezbollah has raised eyebrows. This is because Iranian-backed militias have carried out some 160 attacks on US forces since October 7. Iran mobilized militias in Iraq and Syria to attack the US after Hamas attacked Israel. This was a coordinated move by Iran. Prior to October 7 the militias had also attacked US forces hundreds of times since 2019. Most of the attacks involved small rockets, such as the 107mm or 122mm or drones. Most of them did not result in casualties. However, the attack in Jordan was unprecedented. Iran was gambling that the US would not respond.
Iran has closely watched the Biden administration since January 2021. It has seen how the administration often preferred to strike Iranian-backed groups in Syria, but not in Iraq. The US also tended to shy away from hitting high profile targets.
Iranian media has highlighted the attack. Tasnim News says that “Al-Mayadeen’s reporter in Iraq announced that Abu Baqer Al-Saadi, known as Abu Baqer Diyali, one of the commanders of Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, was martyred in an attack on a passenger car in the east of Baghdad.” Al-Ain media in the Gulf also reported on the strike. Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which are backed by Iran, also condemned the attack in Iraq. READ MORE
