A Trio of Americans Killed in Syrian Territory by Alleged ISIS Assailant, Pentagon Says
A fatal ambush in central Syria on Saturday morning resulted in the deaths of a pair of American troops and one American civilian interpreter, with several other people wounded, as stated by the US Department of Defense.
This offensive on US troops in the historic town of Tadmur represents the initial incident to inflict casualties since the fall of ex-leader Bashar al-Assad roughly a year ago.
"The attack occurred as the service members were conducting a high-level meeting," an official said. "Their mission was in support of ongoing counter-ISIS / anti-terror missions in the region."
The assailant responsible for the gunfire was killed by allied troops, according to a statement from the US defense secretary.
Details Withheld Out of Respect
Central Command indicated that, as a matter of respect for the families and in line with policy, the names of the deceased personnel will not be released until a full day after their next of kin have been informed.
Initial accounts from local news agencies and a war monitor said that gunfire rang out during a tour by US soldiers to the area of Tadmur.
Varying Reports Surface
According to a state-run media outlet, a pair of local security forces and a number of US personnel were injured in the incident. Those hurt were reportedly evacuated by aircraft to a garrison near the frontier with neighboring countries.
A spokesperson for Syria's interior ministry said a shooter linked to ISIS opened fire at the entrance of a army position. Officials are looking into whether the assailant was a formal member of the organization or merely adhered to its radical beliefs.
The official also denied a claim from a Britain-based monitoring group that the attacker was a security member.
Ongoing US Presence in the Region
The US currently has hundreds of troops deployed in eastern Syria as part of a broader coalition fighting the Islamic State.
Despite being militarily routed in Syria in 2019, the group's sleeper cells continue to execute deadly attacks. UN estimates indicate the group retains thousands of militants in both Syria and Iraq.
American forces have been attacked in the past. One of the most severe prior incidents took place in 2019 in northern Syria, when an blast claimed the lives of two US service members and US civilians, among additional casualties.
