The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) has released a brief statement confirming that American airstrikes targeted elements of the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia group in response to continued attacks, including the one against al-Asad Airbase over the weekend, which left several American service members wounded with TBIs

The statement added that airstrikes were carried out “against three facilities used by Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia group and other Iran-affiliated groups in Iraq. These strikes targeted KH headquarters, storage, and training locations for rocket, missile, and one-way attack UAV capabilities.”

U.S. Forces Strike Kataib Hezbollah Capabilities in Iraq
In response to attacks by the Iranian-backed militia group Kataib Hezbollah (KH), including the attack on al-Asad Airbase in western Iraq on Jan. 20, on Jan. 24 at 12:15 a.m., U.S. CENTCOM forces conducted unilateral… pic.twitter.com/eLJcCkHsYQ

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) January 23, 2024

Militia sources have reported casualties in the strikes, which have been carried out in al-Qaim, which sits close to the border with Syria, and south of Baghdad in Jurf Al-Nazar.

Since October 17, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella organization of Iran-backed militias (including Kataib Hezbollah), has carried out over 150 rocket and drone attacks targeting American forces in Iraq and Syria. American forces have previously carried out several retaliatory strikes against militia forces in the region, however, attacks persist.