U.S. targets Iranian-backed militia active in Iraq

The United States is intensifying pressure on the Iranian-backed Kataib Hezbollah militia and its leader, the State Department said on Wednesday, citing the group linked to killing of an American contractor in Iraq in December.

"The Kataib Hezbollah group continues to present a threat to U.S. forces in Iraq," Nathan Sales, the State Department's counterterrorism coordinator, said at a news briefing. "We're adding to the pressure that has existed on this group for a decade."