Syria: Two US soldiers, one civilian killed; Islamic State launches ambush

Two US service members and one American civilian were killed, and three other US troops injured, in an ambush by an Islamic State (IS) gunman in central Syria on Saturday, US Central Command said.

In a post on X, CENTCOM, an American military arm that looks after operations in the Middle East, said the Americans were targeted during a visit by US forces near the historic town of Palmyra.

“Two US service members and one US civilian were killed, and three service members were injured, as a result of an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman in Syria. The gunman was engaged and killed,” the statement said.

The attack marks the first incident to cause US casualties in Syria since the fall of former Syrian president Bashar Assad a year ago. CENTCOM said the identities of the deceased service members would be withheld for 24 hours, in line with Department of War policy, until their next of kin are notified.

Syrian state media SANA reported that shots were fired at Syrian and American forces, wounding several people. The injured were evacuated by helicopter to the US-run al-Tanf garrison near the Syria-Iraq-Jordan border. SANA said the attacker was killed, without giving further details.

A US defence official told the Ap that authorities were aware of the incident but had no immediate information to provide. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least three Syrian security personnel were also wounded, offering a differing account of the attacker’s identity.

The US maintains hundreds of troops in eastern and central Syria as part of an international coalition fighting IS. Though the group was territorially defeated in 2019, the united nations estimates it still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters operating in Syria and Iraq through sleeper cells.

US troops stationed at locations including al-Tanf have been targeted in the past. One of the deadliest such attacks occurred in 2019 in Manbij, when a bombing killed two US service members and two American civilians during a patrol.

Trump says will retaliate

US President Donald Trump on Saturday vowed “very serious retaliation” after the attack in Syria.

Taking to Truth Social, the US president said, We mourn the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers, and one Civilian Interpreter. Likewise, we pray for the three injured soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well. This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them. The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

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