US singles out umbrella group after attack

US singles out umbrella group after attack
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full screen A satellite image of the US military base Tower 22 that was attacked on Sunday. The picture was taken on Monday. Photo: Planet Labs Pbc Via AP/TT

The United States accuses a loosely-knit group of Iraqi militia groups of being behind a deadly attack on a US base in Jordan that killed three American servicemen.

The Tower 22 base, near Jordan’s border with Syria and Iraq, was attacked with drones on Sunday. US President Joe Biden early blamed a “militant, extremist Iran-backed group operating in Syria and Iraq”, without naming it.

Biden’s national security adviser John Kirby said Wednesday that the attack was planned and enabled by the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq,” an umbrella organization that brings together several extremist groups.

The group has been described by US analysts as a loose collection of Iran-backed militia groups that want to present a more united front.

According to the US military, groups like these have directed a total of 166 attacks against US targets in the region alongside the war in Gaza.

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