Iranian media claimed that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked the U.S. Special Operations command center at Al-Tanf in eastern Syria, allegedly in retaliation for the deaths of Iranian personnel in a U.S. strike on the city of Iranshahr.
Reuters said it could not independently verify the claim. A Syrian source told the news agency that Iran had carried out a strike near the Al-Tanf base but did not hit the installation itself. The source also said the attack caused neither casualties nor material damage.
In February 2026, the United States began withdrawing troops from its largest base in Qasrak in northeastern Syria. Later that month, the U.S. military announced it had completed its withdrawal from Al-Tanf, located near the tri-border area of Syria, Jordan and Iraq.
Reuters noted that Syria is seeking to avoid being drawn into the regional conflict that has engulfed neighboring countries, including Lebanon, where Israel is fighting the Hezbollah militant group, and Iraq, where Iranian-backed proxy forces have launched missile and drone attacks.
In March, Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa said his country would stay out of any conflict unless it came under attack itself.
U.S. strikes on Iran
On July 5, the U.S. military launched a large-scale strike on military targets in Iran, hitting more than 140 sites. The operation came in response to an IRGC attack on a Cyprus-flagged commercial container ship in the Strait of Hormuz.
On July 8, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) carried out a second wave of airstrikes targeting southern Iran, including the port cities of Chabahar and Bushehr, in response to Iranian drone attacks on three commercial oil tankers.
On July 14, Iran launched missile and drone strikes against Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. Tehran said the attacks were retaliation for the U.S. strikes.
On July 15, U.S. Central Command announced that the United States had reinstated its naval blockade of Iran.
On July 16, Tehran warned it would launch a large-scale attack if U.S. President Donald Trump followed through on his threats to strike Iranian infrastructure.