Responding to the recent killing of three US service members by Iran’s terrorist proxies in the Middle East, the United States has taken decisive action by targeting a high-ranking pro-Iranian terrorist commander in Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, using a drone strike.
The drone attack, executed on Wednesday evening, was aimed at the leader of Kataib Hezbollah, a terrorist group in Syria supported by the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran also backs other proxies in the region, including Hamas in the Palestinian territories and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
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Among those killed was Wissam Mohammed “Abu Bakr” al-Saadi, a key figure in overseeing Kataib Hezbollah’s operations in Syria, according to sources within the militia speaking to the AP. The operation specifically targeted their vehicle while traveling on a main roadway in Baghdad’s Mashtal neighborhood.
This drone strike follows retaliatory actions by the US military in Iraq and Syria against Iran-aligned militias. These actions were prompted by a drone assault last month that resulted in the deaths of three US soldiers in Jordan. US officials believe this attack, carried out by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a coalition of Iran-backed militias, was orchestrated by Kataib Hezbollah.
The coalition has openly admitted to targeting bases where US forces are stationed in Iraq and Syria, citing retaliation for US support of Israel during the Israel–Hamas conflict.
The timing of the operation coincided with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rejection of Hamas’s ceasefire proposals, emphasizing Israel’s commitment to achieving “absolute victory” in its fight against Hamas. Netanyahu stressed the importance of not conceding to Hamas’s demands, warning that doing so would only invite further violence.
In a related development, Hamas announced the death of Majdi Abdel-Al, a senior police official within the organization, attributing it to an alleged airstrike on his vehicle in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, on the same day as the drone strike in Iraq.
