MOUNTING THREAT

Iran Stepping Up Plans to Kill American Soldiers in Syria: WaPo

Intel leaks reportedly suggest militants are being trained to use a new weapon for the attacks.

Iran is giving militants in Syria new weapons and training to carry out deadly attacks on U.S. soldiers in the country, according to The Washington Post. The newspaper said classified documents leaked on Discord and interviews with intelligence officials indicated that Iran and its allies are equipping forces to use armor-piercing roadside bombs to target American military vehicles. The weapon, known as an explosively formed penetrator (EFP), was previously used in fatal attacks on U.S. convoys during the Iraq War. Two tests of a new type of EFP carried out in January found that the device was able to cut through tank armor almost three inches thick from a range of around 75 feet, one document said. The report said officials in Iran’s Quds Force had been involved in the bomb’s design, adding that one official specifically “identified U.S. Humvee and Cougar armored vehicles in Syria” as intended targets.