The U.S. has about 900 personnel in Syria to assist partnered forces in conducting missions against Islamic State militants. In February it launched a massive attack on Iranian-backed militia sites in Syria in response to a drone attack in Jordan that killed three U.S. service members.
Since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas in Israel, and Israel's large-scale response in Gaza, Iran-backed fighters who are loosely allied with Hamas have carried out drone and rocket attacks on bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria.