The US has carried out air strikes against Iran-linked groups in eastern Syria after a drone attack killed a US contractor, the US defence chief said.

国防部部长表示：在一名美国承包商被无人机袭击杀死后，美军已经对叙利亚东部与伊朗有关的组织发动空袭。

Fourteen pro-Iran fighters were killed, according to a monitoring group.

根据情报部门报告，14名前伊朗士兵被杀死。

US officials said the air strikes happened on Thursday night, hours after the drone attack, which US intelligence said was "of Iranian origin".

美国政府表示这次空袭发生在周四晚上，在空袭前几小时，他们遭受到了无人机攻击，美国智库认为这次攻击是伊朗组织的。

US bases in north-east Syria have come under attack before, with the US responding with air strikes.

美军在叙利亚北部的基地在早些时候就已经遭到无人机攻击，美国对其进行空袭以打击报复。

Last August, the US bombed sites in eastern Syria which it said were linked to Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) - its most powerful armed force - after rocket attacks on US troops there.

去年八月，在遭受到火箭弹袭击后，美军轰炸了叙利亚东部的一个基地，该基地被认为和伊朗伊斯兰革命武装卫队有关，这是伊朗最强大的武装力量。

Thursday night's air strikes were carried out on President Biden's orders "in response to... [the drone] attack as well as a series of recent attacks against coalition forces in Syria by groups affiliated with the IRGC", US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin said.

美国五角大楼表示：这次空袭是在总统拜登授权下进行，作为对最近伊朗一系列攻击的回应。

He said they had targeted "facilities used by groups affiliated with... [the] IRGC".

他表示目前美军的目标是隶属于伊朗军队的组织。

Mr Biden, who is in Canada for a working visit, said he was briefed on the death of the US contractor while he was travelling to Ottawa early evening on Thursday.

拜登目前正在加拿大进行国事访问，他在周四早上前往Ottawa的途中得到了一名承包商死亡的消息。

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Mr Biden offered condolences to the family of the US contractor that was killed, and emphasised that the US does not seek conflict in Iran. But he added: "Be prepared for us to act forcefully to protect our people."

周五发言人表示，拜登依据对遇难的承包商家属表示哀悼，并强调美国不会主动引发与伊朗更激烈的对抗。但他也表示：随时准备用武力回应是为了保护我们的人民。

The conflict continued to escalate on Friday morning when rockets targeted another US base, Green Village, in north-eastern Syria, US officials said. They said the rocket fire did not result in any injuries.

冲突进一步升级，周五早上美军在一个叙利亚东北部的村子里的基地遭到了火箭弹攻击。但美军表示目前没有任何人伤亡。

Speaking to CNN on Friday, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the government would "work to protect our people and our facilities as best we can. It's a dangerous environment," he said.

根据CNN的报道，美国防部发言人表示政府一致致力于即使在最危险的环境下保护美国人和美国公司的安全。

Speaking to BBC Newshour, Joel Rayburn, US special envoy to Syria under President Trump, said Iranian-sponsored attacks on US troops in eastern Syria began in 2017.

特朗普任命的美国驻叙利亚特使Joel Rayburn在接受BBC新闻一小时采访时表示：伊朗支持的对叙利亚东部美军的袭击始于2017年。

"It's usually drone strikes or rockets or mortars, against our bases. Most of the time they don't do any damage and they don't cause casualties," he said.

通常是无人机、火箭弹或迫击炮袭击。但大部分时候他们并不能造成什么损失。

"The defence secretary's point is that that's unacceptable and President Biden authorised a military response against the same kind of guys that carried that out on behalf of the Iranian regime."

“国防部长的观点是，这是不可接受的，拜登总统授权对代表伊朗政权实施这一行动的同一类人作出军事回应。”

The US defence department said the contractor had been killed, and five US service personnel and a second contractor wounded, when the drone struck a maintenance facility on a coalition base near Hasakah.

美国国防部表示，无人机袭击了哈萨卡附近联盟基地的一个维修设施，导致承包商死亡，五名美国服务人员和第二名承包商受伤。

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) - a UK-based monitoring group - said the US strikes killed six pro-Iran fighters in Deir al-Zour city, six in al-Bukamal, and two in the desert of al-Mayadeen.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) - a UK-based monitoring group - said the US strikes killed six pro-Iran fighters in Deir al-Zour city, six in al-Bukamal, and two in the desert of al-Mayadeen.

Iran has not commented.

伊朗对此没有做出回应。

About 900 US troops are operating out of bases in southern and eastern Syria, without the permission of the Syrian government, as part of the US-led global coalition against the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).

作为美国领导的打击圣战组织伊斯兰国（IS）的全球联盟的一部分，约900名美军在未经叙利亚政府许可的情况下，从叙利亚南部和东部的基地开展行动。

They are tasked with preventing a resurgence of IS, whose militants once controlled large swathes of Syria before being defeated in 2019 following separate campaigns waged by US-backed Kurdish and Arab militia fighters and Iran- and Russia-backed pro-government forces.

他们的任务是防止伊斯兰国死灰复燃。伊斯兰国武装分子曾控制叙利亚大片地区，2019年在美国支持的库尔德和阿拉伯民兵以及伊朗和俄罗斯支持的亲政府部队分别发动战役后被击败。

The IRGC has built a substantial presence in Syria since the civil war began in 2011, sending hundreds of troops to advise President Bashar al-Assad's forces and to train and arm thousands of militiamen.

自2011年内战开始以来，伊斯兰革命卫队在叙利亚建立了大量存在，派遣了数百名士兵为巴沙尔·阿萨德总统的部队提供建议，并训练和武装了数千名民兵。

Elsewhere in Syria, SOHR reported that 15 truffle hunters had been killed by IS in the eastern desert.

在叙利亚其他地方，SOHR报道称，15名松露猎人在东部沙漠被IS杀害。

On Thursday, seven civilians and eight tribesmen working for the Al-Qaterji militia were reportedly killed in Hama, an area where many locals depend on finding truffles for their income.

据报道，周四，为Al-Qaterji民兵组织工作的七名平民和八名部落成员在哈马被杀，该地区许多当地人依靠寻找松露为生。

The fate of 40 other people remains unknown, the observatory said.

其他40人的命运仍然未知。