US military base in Syria hit by missiles.

US forces in Al-Hasakah province, Syria (Photo: Getty).

"In less than an hour, the US base was attacked three times, first with two missiles, then three more missiles were fired at the base. US air defenses were unable to intercept the missiles," a local source in Syria told Sputnik on February 13.

Sources said that during the third attack, "more than 10 missiles struck the base, causing a fire to break out."

According to sources, the US military responded to the incident by shelling the positions of the attacking forces. US attack helicopters were also deployed to patrol the area.

US armed forces control territories in eastern and northeastern Syria in the provinces of Deir ez-Zor, Al-Hasakah, and Raqqa, home to Syria's largest oil and gas fields.

Syria has repeatedly criticized the presence of US troops on its territory, accusing Washington of wanting to control the oil fields there.

US military bases in Syria and Iraq have recently been repeatedly targeted by drone and missile attacks.

Earlier this month, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI) announced the deployment of UAVs to attack a US military base near the Al-Omar oil field in Deir ez-Zor province, eastern Syria. The IRI is an alliance of Iranian-backed militia groups in Iraq.

IRI is believed to have carried out more than 150 attacks on US military bases in Iraq and Syria over the past three months, since the conflict between Israel and Hamas broke out.

Last month, US officials also accused the Islamic Resistance in Iraq of being behind a drone attack on a US air base in Jordan that killed three soldiers and injured more than 40.

This is the first time American soldiers have been killed in the area since the Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza erupted last October. Prior to this, US bases in Syria and Iraq also came under fire.

In response to attacks on military bases, the US launched a series of raids on targets belonging to pro-Iranian armed groups in Iraq and Syria. Washington declared that this was just the beginning of a retaliatory campaign.

The US has stated its unwavering support for Israel and its readiness to provide military aid to help Israel retaliate against Hamas.

The White House accused Iran of "actively facilitating" Tehran-backed groups in carrying out missile and drone attacks on U.S. military bases in Iraq and Syria.

The US currently maintains 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in neighboring Iraq. Washington says it is carrying out a mission to advise and support local forces in order to prevent the resurgence of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS).

Security analysts say there are growing concerns that the Israel-Hamas conflict could spread throughout the Middle East and turn U.S. troops at bases into targets of attack.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/can-cu-quan-su-my-o-syria-bi-doi-ten-lua-20240214073319207.htm