The Pentagon released declassified videos of its most recent airstrikes in eastern Syria, a move that provides fresh detail on the targets that were struck Nov. 12 and the damage to the sites.
The videos, which were taken by U.S. drones, show that two targets were hit: a headquarters for Iran’s paramilitary Quds Force near Mayadin, Syria, and a training facility used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) near Abu Kamal, Syria.
The videos showcased the U.S.’s ability to conduct “precision” raids against Iranian-backed militias in response to attacks on American forces in Iraq and Syria, the Pentagon said in a release.
The Quds Force headquarters is engulfed in a plume of smoke after being struck while the attack on the training facility produced multiple secondary explosions.
Military experts do not expect the strikes to bring a quick end to the militia rocket and drone attacks against U.S. forces. At a minimum, the Pentagon hopes that they will reduce the militia’s capability.
“These strikes are intended to disrupt and degrade the freedom of action and capabilities of these groups, which are directly responsible for attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq and Syria,” Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said during a press conference in Seoul, South Korea, on Nov. 13.
Local reports suggest there were casualties at one of the sites, but the Pentagon has not yet publicly confirmed those accounts.
“We are continuing to do battle damage assessment,” Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said Nov. 14. “We are aware that there were IRGC-affiliated members in the proximity of the facilities that were struck by our aircraft. But I don’t have more on casualty numbers.”
The Nov. 12 strikes were the third round of air attacks by the U.S. since the militias began attacking U.S. forces on Oct. 17. The Defense Department has said there were no casualties in its two previous rounds of airstrikes.
As of Nov. 14, there have been 55 attacks on U.S. forces in just under a month, including several that were carried out after the Nov. 12 airstrike. All told, 59 U.S. personnel have been injured, all of whom have returned to duty.
The U.S. has around 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 troops in Syria working with local partners to battle Islamic State militants.
“We are in Syria and Iraq for our mission to defeat ISIS,” Singh said. “We have seen Iran and Iran proxy groups continue to attack U.S. forces because we know Iran doesn’t want us there.”
“We do want to see a stop to these attacks on U.S. forces,” Singh added.