US says it has destroyed or damaged 84 out of 85 targets in Iraq and Syria

(CNN)- The United States destroyed or damaged 84 of 85 targets in a wide-ranging series of airstrikes in Syria and Iraq on Friday, but there was no sign of Iranian casualties, according to two US defense officials.

All but one of the 85 targets were “destroyed or functionally damaged,” officials said, citing preliminary assessments of battlefield damage.

A full analysis of the aftermath of the attack is still ongoing, but an official said there was no indication that members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were killed as part of the operation.

In response to a drone strike in Jordan last weekend that killed three American service members and injured dozens of others, the United States has targeted facilities used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iran-backed groups in Iraq and Syria and Attacked with weapons.

This was the first time the United States attacked both countries simultaneously. In Iraq, the United States attacked Al Qaim and Akashat near the Syrian border. And in Syria, the United States launched strikes near al-Barum, Deir ez-Zur, and al-Mayadeen. The list of targets includes command and control centres, intelligence centres, rockets, missiles, drone storage facilities and more.

Briefing reporters on Friday after the attacks, Douglas Sims, director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the targets were “selected with the consideration that there would be potential for casualties inside those facilities.”

The Biden administration has faced criticism for waiting too long to respond to a deadly drone strike in Jordan, giving Iranian-backed militias in Iraq and Syria time to move their personnel. Sims noted Friday that good weather conditions were not in place for the operation until Friday night.

US President Joe Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the strikes, much larger than previous US operations in Iraq or Syria, were just the beginning of the US response.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” on Sunday that the US retaliation for the attack, which killed three US service members, is far from over. Sullivan called Friday’s attacks “the beginning of our response and more actions will follow.”

The US strike on Saturday comes after US troops came under attack at the Euphrates Mission Support Site, also known as the Conoco oil field, according to a defense official. The attack involved two rockets being launched at the location, with no injuries or damage reported.