US Officials Justify Strikes on Syria as ‘Self-Defense’, Citing Defense Purposes

A spokesperson for the Pentagon said that recent U.S. strikes on Iranian-backed groups in Syria were “self-defense” amid heightened Middle East tensions.

During an interview with ABC News on Friday, national security spokesman John Kirby said that those airstrikes were carried out on a weapons storage facility and a separate ammunition storage area that was being used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in eastern Syria. It came after U.S. officials said that American troops came under attack a number of times in the past week, blaming Iran-backed forces in the region.

“Well, these strikes were very much done in self-defense. As you know, our forces and facilities had come under a range of attacks, rocket attacks, largely by these proxy groups, but they’re backed by Iran, in Iraq, and in Syria,” Mr. Kirby told ABC News.

U.S. officials have not disclosed the groups responsible for the attacks on U.S. troops. It has been reported that American and allied forces in Iraq and Syria have been attacked at least 16 times this month.

“These strikes were in self-defense for our ability to protect ourselves and our troops. I mean, they went right at targets that were tied to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. That is resourcing, funding, training, and making capable all these proxy groups. These two targets went right at their storage facilities, weapons facilities, that kind of thing, to try to get at their ability to do exactly that,” Mr. Kirby added.

One way Iran projects power is by arming and funding various groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen, and Shi’ite militias in Iraq.

Warning to Iran

In a separate statement, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the strikes were not connected to the Israel-Hamas war that erupted earlier this month.

“They are separate and distinct from the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, and do not constitute a shift in our approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict,” Mr. Austin said in a statement Thursday. “Iran wants to hide its hand and deny its role in these attacks against our forces. We will not let them,” he added.