US bases in Syria and Iraq targeted by drone attacks as destroyer stops missiles from Yemen
- US troops attacked in Iraq and Syria, and on alert for more strikes after US warship in Red Sea intercepts missiles launched by Houthi rebels
- Fears grow that the United States will be pulled into wider war in the Middle East as Israel prepares to invade Gaza to destroy Hamas
The United States is seeing stepped-up drone attacks in Iraq and Syria, the Pentagon said on Thursday, while an American destroyer in the Red Sea intercepted cruise missiles and drones fired toward Israel by Houthi rebels in Yemen.
The uptick in activity, which targeted US bases in Syria and Iraq, has resulted in minor injuries but prompted fresh concerns that Israel’s war with Hamas may spark a bigger conflict and pull in the US.
The Pentagon is also sending more forces to the region, including fighter jets.
“You have to look at these individually – we’re taking them seriously and responding appropriately,” Brigadier General Pat Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters Thursday. “Our focus is on deterring a broader regional conflict, and right now this conflict is contained between Israel and Hamas.”
The US base at Al Tanf, Syria, was targeted by two drones on Wednesday, Ryder said. The same day, US forces defended against two drones in western Iraq and a third in the country’s north.
Separately, the destroyer USS Carney intercepted three cruise missiles and several drones launched by Houthi rebels in Yemen, Ryder said. He said the missiles were headed north over the Red Sea – and in the direction of Israel – but the US was “still assessing” the target.