US in 'Tough Balancing Act' to Hit Iran Targets Without Expanding Gaza War

The U.S. has hinted that its airstrikes against Tehran-linked groups in Iraq and Syria would continue if they continued to attack American targets, with a retired vice admiral saying it is a tough balancing act to prevent the conflict escalating in the region.

Robert Murrett, who served in the U.S. Navy from 1976 to 2010, including in an intelligence capacity, told Newsweek it is vital to protect American assets in the Middle East essential to fighting the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) while ensuring tensions do not "expand to the next level."

Iranian-backed forces have carried out at least 40 attacks against U.S. and coalition troops in Iraq and Syria in recent weeks following the October 7 attacks on southern Israel by Hamas, which also is supported by Tehran.

At least 45 American troops suffered brain injuries or minor wounds in the attacks, which were followed by the U.S. military's third airstrike in three weeks in Syria on Sunday, Reuters reported.

Facilities used by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and related groups in the cities of Albu Kamal and Mayadeen were targeted, Reuters reported. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that if the attacks did not stop "we won't hesitate to do what's necessary...to protect the troops."

There are about 900 American troops in Syria, and 2,500 in neighboring Iraq, where they help local forces as part of Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), the name for the U.S.-led coalition war against ISIS, which in 2014 seized large swathes of both countries but was later defeated.

"It's complicated because the strikes are going after Iranian surrogates who operate in the area in both Iraq and Syria at the same time the overall OIR operation efforts are taking place," said Murrett, who is the deputy director of the Institute for Security Policy and Law at Syracuse University.

There are fears that Iranian proxies could seek to target U.S. troops in isolated bases using heavier weaponry than the smaller rockets and drones they have use so far.

To deter Iran's groups, the U.S. has deployed additional air defenses and sent warships and fighter aircraft to the region, including two aircraft carriers. The death toll in Gaza has hit 11,000 from Israel's bombardment of the Palestinian territory that followed the Hamas attack in southern Israel that killed 1,200.

In response to the attacks on the U.S. targets, there are more U.S. military patrols, a restriction of access to base facilities and a boost intelligence collection, including through drone and other surveillance operations, Reuters reported.

"It's a tough balancing act," Murrett said. "The big issue is responding to attacks that are being done by Iranian surrogates in a measured way that has a deterrent effect but does not cause the tension that exists in the area in the conflict to expand to the next level."

He said it not just down to whether Iran's surrogates launch more attacks on U.S. targets but also what action the Tehran-backed Hezbollah group in Lebanon may take against northern Israel.

"We will have to look at it day-to-day," he said. "I think the United States and the Iranians understand each other very clearly. We disagree about a lot of stuff, but I think the signals and the activity that we're taking on the military front will hopefully have a deterrent effect and keep the conflict from widening."