The Pentagon announced Tuesday that the number of United States troops injured in the 56 attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria since Oct. 17 has risen to 59. The injured U.S. personnel have reportedly either been designated with non-serious injuries or with traumatic brain injuries.
Sharing an update Tuesday on the Middle East terrorist attacks against U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said, “We are also tracking 59 U.S. personnel who have received injuries in the TBI or non-serious categories since these attacks began. Approximately 27 personnel have been evaluated for TBI, and 32 for other non-serious injuries. As of today, all 59 have returned to duty.”
Multiple terrorist organizations in the region began launching increased attacks against U.S. forces in both Iraq and Syria in the middle of October, less than two weeks after Hamas terrorists conducted a brutal surprise attack against Israel, resulting in the tragic death of hundreds of civilians.
An anonymous defense official told Stars and Stripes that the latest attack against U.S. forces in the Middle East came Tuesday morning, as multiple rockets were launched against a United States base located at Mission Support Site Euphrates in Syria. According to the official, no casualties were reported, and the attack did not result in infrastructure damage.
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Tuesday’s attack brings the total number of terrorist attacks by drones and rockets against U.S. forces in Syria to 29 and the total number of attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq to 27.
Prior to Tuesday’s attack, U.S. forces were attacked four times between Sunday and Monday, including at Rumalyn Landing Zone, Mission Support Site Green Village, Mission Support Site Euphrates, and U.S. bases at al-Shaddadi.
The United States has carried out multiple airstrikes against sites used by Iran-backed terrorist organizations in response to the continued attacks against U.S. forces in the Middle East. The most recent retaliatory strike by the U.S. military took place last week, as two F-15s targeted a weapons storage facility in eastern Syria.
Despite the persistence of the attacks against U.S. forces in the region, Singh told reporters Tuesday that the Pentagon believes the military’s deterrence airstrikes have been working since the war between Israel and Hamas has not escalated into a larger-scale conflict in the Middle East.
“I think we are being very deliberate on how and when we conduct our strikes against these groups,” she said. “And I think that Iran is certainly seeing that message.”
