As the US bombs Iranian sites in Syria, the Houthis shoot down drones over the Red Sea

US troops stationed in Iraq and Syria have been targeted by rockets and drones 41 times since the wave began on October 17, with 46 service members reported injured in the attacks. Twenty-four of those service members were diagnosed with traumatic brain injury, Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters Monday. Two of them were flown to Germany for further treatment.

“The United States is fully prepared to take the necessary steps to protect our people and our facilities,” Austin continued. “We urge against any escalation. US personnel will continue to conduct missions against ISIS in Iraq and Syria,” he said, referring to the Islamic State.

Also in the region, the Houthi-led government in Yemen on Wednesday shot down a US MQ-9 surveillance drone flying in international airspace over the Red Sea. The attack follows an episode last month in which a US destroyer shot down several ballistic missiles and drones fired by the Iran-backed group towards Israel.

The surge in violence across the region comes after Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel killed 1,400 people, the vast majority civilians.

The ensuing Israeli response, which has included a massive aerial bombardment and a ground invasion of Gaza that Israel says is targeting Hamas’ leadership and weapons, as well as command and control posts, has hit the region as the number of civilian deaths increases.

The Biden administration has been criticized for continuing to supply Israel with precision-guided munitions to continue the fight, but US and Israeli officials have pointed out that Hamas is deliberately placing these sites amid civilian infrastructure in the Gaza Strip densely packed

“In this war, protecting and supporting civilians is difficult for a number of reasons,” Dana Stroul, the Pentagon’s deputy assistant secretary for the Middle East, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday.

Not only is Gaza densely populated, Stroul said, but “Hamas is using civilians as human shields, and because Hamas placed rockets and weapons in civilian areas while digging terrorist tunnels under civilian infrastructure and protected places, such as schools and hospitals”.

Stroul added that “we make clear to Israel every day that efforts to mitigate and respond to civilian harm are a moral and strategic imperative.”