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Iraq-Syria border strikes on pro-Iran ‘militias’ spark retaliation

Airstrikes on both sides of the Iraqi-Syrian border near Qaim conducted by the United States were followed by retaliatory strikes by Iran-linked groups against a Kurdish-led SDF base housing coalition forces in eastern Syria.

Iraqi mourners attend the funeral of a fighter of the Hashid Shaabi paramilitary alliance following US airstrikes on the Syrian-Iraqi border, on June 28, 2021, in the northern Ninevah province.
Iraqi mourners attend the funeral of a fighter of the Hashid Shaabi paramilitary alliance following US airstrikes on the Syrian-Iraqi border, on June 28, 2021, in the northern Ninevah province. Iraq's Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi today condemned an overnight US airstrike against Iran-backed armed groups, which a monitor said killed at least seven fighters. The Pentagon said it had conducted retaliatory targeted airstrikes against "facilities used by Iran-backed militia groups" on the Iraq-Syria border. — ZAID AL-OBEIDI/AFP via Getty Images

On June 29, four coffins draped in the Iraqi flag were carried through central Baghdad streets packed with people taking part in a symbolic funeral procession protest.

US airstrikes on June 27 near the city of Qaim on the country’s border with Syria killed four members of what a Pentagon spokesperson said were “Iran-backed militia groups responsible for the series of recent attacks against facilities housing US personnel in Iraq.”

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