Hizbullah-Affiliated Daily: Escalation Anticipated In Attacks Against U.S. Forces In Syria; Hizbullah Brigades: If Americans Attack Us, "It Will Bring Disaster Upon Them"

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Between August 23 and August 25, 2022, there was a further escalation of the tensions between the U.S. forces and Iran-backed forces in Syria.

According to U.S. Undersecretary of Defense Dr. Colin Kahl, on August 23, U.S. planes bombed "several infrastructure facilities used by militia groups affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps [IRGC]. The strike," he added, "was necessary to protect and defend U.S. personnel in Syria, which had been the targets of several recent attacks by Iran-backed militia groups, including the most recent ones on August 15."[1] Arab news outlets reported that the targets of the attack were the Ayyash storage facilities in the western rural area of Deir Al-Zour, thought to be the largest storage facilities of the IRGC-backed militias in Syria.[2]

In response to this attack, on August 24 U.S. bases at the Conoco and Al-Omar oil and gas fields in the northeast of the country were targeted. To date, no one has claimed responsibility for the attacks on the bases. The Hizbullah-affiliated Lebanese daily Al-Akhbar reported, citing "sources on the ground," that "factions of the popular resistance" were responsible for them, and that they caused substantial damage and wounded American and other soldiers stationed at the bases. [3]

It should be noted that a similar attack on American forces at Al-Omar, on April 7, 2022, was also attributed to "factions of the popular resistance,"[4] a phrase which serves as a codename for armed groups directed and supported by the Syrian regime and by Iran.[5]

The Al-Akhbar daily added, again citing "well-informed sources on the ground," that "the successful [operations] of the popular resistance which caused losses among the American ranks are the start of a comprehensive escalation against the illegitimate American presence in Syria. In the coming days," it stated, "there will be further rocket attacks and perhaps also ground attacks on bases and movements of the [Global] Coalition [to Defeat the Islamic State] in Deir Al-Zour, Al-Hasakah and Al-Tanf." The sources also claimed that "members of the resistance" use portable rocket launchers, which makes it difficult to locate and eliminate them.[6]

In an August 29, 2022 article, Al-Akhbar repeated the assertion that additional attacks against the "illegitimate" American presence in Syria were anticipated, and again quoted "sources on the ground" as saying that, "despite the losses caused by the latest shelling of several positions of the forces assisting [the Syrian regime] in Deir Al-Zour, this will not affect the determination to rout the Americans in Syria… The attack of the popular resistance on the illegitimate bases of the American occupation is legitimate, since the Americans are occupiers and are present [in Syria] without the consent of the legitimate government." The sources believe that "the escalation against the Americans will continue" in light of the "Syrian-Russian-Iranian-Turkish consensus" that the American presence in Syria must be eliminated because "it is obstructing a solution to the [Syria] crisis." The sources further project that "the popular resistance will lead the attack on the American presence," concurrent with anticipated activity by the Russian Air Force against factions of the armed rebels, i.e., the Maghawir Al-Thawra faction, which is loyal to the U.S.[7]

Senior Hizbullah Brigade Official: We Have Not Attacked Americans In Syria Or Iraq; If The U.S. Attacks Us, We Will Respond Forcefully

It should be noted that Abu 'Ali Al-'Askari, the military spokesman for the Hizbullah Brigades, has denied any involvement on the part of his organization in the recent attack on American targets in Iraq and in Syria. In a message he posted on August 28 on his Telegram channel, he stressed that "there were no mutual attacks between Hizbullah and the American invaders during the past week, in Iraq, Syria or anywhere else. The claim [that the Hizbullah Brigades] are responsible for these [attacks] proves the American's failure to protect their occupation forces and exposes their lack of intelligence capabilities to discern what is happening around them. Furthermore, the aim is to fabricate justifications for shelling here or there. If this does occur, it will bring disaster upon them."[8]