Drone attack kills six at American base in Syria

A drone attack allegedly carried out by the Iran-backed Islamic Resistance group has killed six Kurdish troops at an American base in east Syria. 14 people have been injured.

The Syrian Defence Force (SDF) is composed primarily of Kurdish, Arab, and Assyrian/Syriac members. It's thought that the number of deaths will rise given the serious nature of the injuries.

The attack is considered the first response by Iranian militias on American bases after joint UK and US airstrikes on linked sites at the end of last week, the observatory also said. 

The UK and US carried out strikes on at least 85 targets in Iraq and Syria used by Iranian-backed militias on Friday after three service members were killed in Jordan at the end of last month. 

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is travelling to the Middle East, with one of his aims to be to directly tell countries in the region that the US does not want regional escalation but will respond to attacks on its personnel or interests. 

Iran has warned of a swift response to any potential direct attacks by the US or any other nation.