11 months ago
Three American service-members were injured by a drone attack in Iraq on Monday, National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said. One of the three was "critically" injured.
The strike by the "one-way attack drone" was met with U.S. retaliation, according to the statement from Watson, with President Joe Biden ordering American forces to strike multiple targets "focused specifically on unmanned aerial drone activities."
American military personnel in the Middle East have increasingly come under attack in the region since Hamas' intrusion into Israel on Oct. 7 led to an Israeli invasion of Gaza. Commercial shipping in the region has also come under fire.
"The Iranian-backed militia Kataib Hezbollah and affiliated groups, under an umbrella of Iranian-backed militants, claimed credit for the attack," Watson said in the statement Monday night.
None of the three service-members were identified, nor was it specified in which branch of the military they served.
Watson said the Biden administration would consider further counter-strikes.
"The President places no higher priority than the protection of American personnel serving in harm’s way," Watson said. "The United States will act at a time and in a manner of our choosing should these attacks continue."
Biden and first lady Jill Biden spent part of Christmas Day calling American military personnel in Michigan, Hawaii and around the world to offer Christmas greetings and thank them for their service.
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