A US soldier in northern Syria, on February 13.DELIL SOULEIMAN / AFP
The United States on Thursday carried out an airstrike in Syria on a structure that belonged to what it said were Iranian-backed militias, two officials told Reuters, in an apparent response to rocket attacks on US targets in Iraq.
The attack has been limited, the agency cites, which could reduce the risk of an escalation.
The decision to strike only in Syria and not in Iraq would give the Iraqi government breathing space as it conducts its own investigation into a February 15 attack that injured Americans.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the operation was approved by President Joe Biden.
The rocket attacks on US positions in Iraq coincided with talks between Washington and Tehran to recapture the 2015 nuclear deal abandoned by former President Donald Trump.
In the February 15 attack, a series of rockets hit the US military base located at Erbil International Airport in the Kurdish-run region, killing a non-US contractor and wounding several US contractors.