On Monday, U.S. forces deployed near the Omar Oil Field in Syria came under rocket fire, from what is believed to be an Iran-backed militia group. The rocket attack comes a day after U.S. airstrikes targeted several Iran-backed militias in Syria.
“#Iran-backed militias have attacked an American base at Omar Oil Field in Syria. No casualties as of now,” one Twitter user tweeted. “American retaliation expected. Drones and fighter jets noted overhead. (ht @N0tWoofers)” with video of a purported rocket launch in the area.
Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) spokesman Col. Wayne Marotto confirmed a rocket attack had targeted U.S. forces in Syria. Marotto tweeted, “Initial report: At approx. 7:44 PM local time, U.S. Forces in Syria were attacked by multiple rockets. There are no injuries and damage is being assessed. We will provide updates when we have more information.”
“Update: U.S. Forces in Syria, while under multiple rocket attack, acted in self-defense and conducted counter-battery artillery fire at rocket launching positions.
Marotto did not confirm if U.S. forces had determined who was behind the rocket attacks.
The rocket attack comes the day after a trio of U.S. airstrikes targeted several Iran-backed militias on the Syrian side of the Syria-Iraq border. Those pro-Iranian militants were suspected of carrying out recent drone attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq.
One of the militia groups targeted in the Sunday U.S. airstrikes, the Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS), vowed immediately after the strikes to escalate into open war with U.S. forces in Iraq.
The KSS said, “From now on, we will go to open war with the American occupation, the first action of which is targeting the enemy planes in beloved Iraq’s sky.”
Iran’s Tasnim news was one of the first to report on the missile attack against U.S. forces in Syria.
One Twitter user tweeted, “Artillery bombardment of positions around Mayadin by American guns is ongoing. American drones and jets are circling overhead while AH-64 Apaches are also in the area. I don’t think we’re done. Tonight the Americans responded to rocket attack on Omar Oil Field with artillery, airstrikes, and potentially HIMARS missiles on targets near Mayadin. Attacks were not large-scale, but targeted towards artillery/rocket systems.”
That same Twitter user tweeted that the back and forth barrages were continuing.
“Explosions reported in Dhiban, east of Mayadin, amidst news of new artillery bombardment by pro-government forces,” they tweeted. “Was not expecting back and forth shelling. The Americans will likely bomb the artillery if this continues.”
