U.S. forces in Syria are coming under renewed pressure from Iran-backed militias, illustrating Washington’s challenges as it seeks to pull back from the Middle East while the influence of geopolitical rivals China and Russia is growing in the region. The latest series of tit-for-tat strikes began Thursday when militants carried out a drone attack on U.S. forces in northeast Syria, killing an American contractor and wounding six other Americans. The U.S. accused Iran of backing the attacks and sent two F-15Es to bomb sites it said were used by Iran-backed forces in Syria, the U.S. military said. Hours later, militants fired 10 rockets at a second U.S. base in eastern Syria, including one the military said missed by 3 miles and hit a house, injuring two women and two children.

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