Iran denies any link to targets hit by US strike in Syria's Deir az-Zour

Iran denied having any link to sites targeted by the United States in Syria, Tehran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said on Wednesday, according to the ministry's telegram channel.

On Tuesday, the US military said it carried out a strike in Syria's Deir az-Zour against infrastructure facilities used by groups affiliated with Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

"The US attack on Syrian infrastructure and people is a violation of Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The sites targeted had no links to the Islamic Republic," Kanaani said.

Military sources on the ground told The New Arab's affiliate Syria TV that the targeted sites included a training camp belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), which the US considers a terrorist organisation, and an ammunition dump used by Iran-backed militias including Lebanon's Hezbollah.

The Ayyash camp, which is run jointly by the IRGC and Syrian regime forces, was also targeted according to Syria TV. 

US forces first deployed in Syria during the Obama administration's campaign against Islamic State, partnering with a Kurdish-led group called the Syrian Democratic Forces. There are about 900 US troops in Syria, most of them in the east.

Iran-backed militias established a foothold in Syria while fighting in support of President Bashar al-Assad's regime during Syria's civil war. 

(Reuters)