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New attacks hit US bases in Iraq, Syria as Iran ups threats over Gaza

White House and Pentagon officials have said they will hold Iran accountable for attacks on US bases by Iranian proxies.

A picture taken on Jan. 13, 2020, during a press tour organized by the US-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group, shows a view inside Ain al-Asad military air base
A picture taken on Jan. 13, 2020, during a press tour organized by the US-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group, shows a view inside Ain al-Asad military air base housing US and other foreign troops in the western Iraqi province of Anbar. — AYMAN HENNA/AFP via Getty Images

WASHINGTON — US troops in Iraq and Syria came under a spate of new rocket and drone attacks over the weekend, as the Pentagon sent an Ohio-class nuclear-powered submarine into the region to join two aircraft carrier strike groups in a bid to deter Iran and its proxies from exploiting Israel’s war in Gaza.

US troops at the Ain al-Asad air base in Iraq’s Anbar province and at three separate bases in Syria have shot down at least six separate one-way attack drones directed at their positions since Friday, a defense official revealed to Al-Monitor on Monday.

On Sunday alone, US troops shot down drones in three attacks targeting the Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq and one each targeting separate US bases at al-Tanf and Tal Baydar in Syria.

US forces at al-Asad airbase shot down two attempted one-way drone attacks Sunday morning and afternoon before responding a third barrage of multiple drones and rockets Sunday night, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

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