Pro-Iran militias launch 60 attacks on U.S. bases in Syria to avenge Gaza conflict: monitor

DAMASCUS, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- Pro-Iran militias have launched 60 attacks on American bases in Syria since Oct. 19 in retaliation for the United States' backing of Israel during the Gaza conflict, a war monitor reported Thursday.

The attacks, which included rocket shells and drone strikes, have been targeting the U.S. bases in eastern Syria rather than the energy fields that some U.S. bases were built on, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The Britain-based watchdog group said the attacks had recently escalated as the Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip continued, noting that the U.S. forces are tight-lipped about their losses.

In previous reports, the observatory noted that these attacks were launched from inside the Iraqi territories and targeted U.S. bases in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour near the Iraqi border.