The United States launched airstrikes in Iraq and Syria Sunday targeting what U.S. officials say is an Iran-backed paramilitary group. The U.S. airstrikes came after an American contractor was killed in a rocket attack on a military base in Kirkuk, Iraq, Friday. The U.S. airstrikes and the killing of the American contractor threaten a major escalation of tensions in the region. The spokesperson for the Kata’ib Hezbollah militia says the U.S. airstrikes killed 25 people. This militia is not related to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran condemned the U.S. bombing as an act of terrorism and denied participating in attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq. Iraq has also condemned the U.S. airstrikes as a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.