American thinking: Targeting and killing people in drone strikes and not expecting retaliation

Editor's note: In war if you discovered a US military base operating drones that locate and target you for attack would you retaliate to protect and defend yourself? The US military leaving Syria is a good decision. Let those people in the region figure out their own way forward. If they want to kill each other, blow up critical infrastructure and destroy their countries let them. The US has plenty of resources to chart its own course forward without bombing, destroying and stealing resources from one country after another. 

US efficiency: 34 years of dropping bombs on Middle East countries
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Source: The Intercept

"Logistics" outpost In Jordan Where 3 US Troops Died Is Secretly a Drone Base

The Pentagon is covering up the real purpose of Tower 22: targeting the very Iran-backed militant groups that attacked last month.

By Ken Klippenstein | February 9 2024

TOWER 22, the U.S. base in Jordan where three American service members were killed last month, is not simply a "logistics support base," as the Pentagon has described it.

What the Pentagon hasn't mentioned is that Tower 22 is also a drone base conducting long-range reconnaissance on militants in neighboring Syria and Iraq for airstrikes, according to two U.S. military sources. The base also serves as a staging facility for special operations forces and a medevac helicopter home base.

And while the Pentagon says Tower 22’s mission was to combat the Islamic State, or ISIS, since Hamas's assault on Israel in October, its focus has turned to Iran-backed militia groups.

"To call Tower 22 a logistics support base is complete bullshit."

"To call Tower 22 a logistics support base is complete bullshit," an Air Force airman, whose unit was recently stationed at the base, told The Intercept. Logistics was a small part of the mission, amounting to weekly food and fuel deliveries to the nearby Al-Tanf base.

"The main purpose of Tower 22 is to operate drones to spy on insurgents in Iraq and Syria, for targeting purposes," the airman said. "The main objective I witnessed was taking out targets."

Tower 22 provided targeting intelligence to Air Force assets stationed at other bases in Jordan, such as Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, to use in strikes, the airman said.

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