Two American soldiers and a translator were killed this Saturday in an attack in Syria by Daesh against a joint patrol of the American army and Syrian government security forces. Three other American soldiers and two Syrian agents were injured … the attack, which occurred in the historic city of Palmyra.
The Pentagon confirmed the attack in a social media post from its spokesperson, Sean Parnell, who detailed that the mission the Americans were involved in was “counter-terrorism in the region.”
The US military explained that the attack was carried out by a “lone attacker” who had set up an “ambush” against the patrol. And Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later added that the person responsible was later killed during the response of “associated forces,” referring to Syrian government forces.
The victims were evacuated by helicopter and taken to the US military base at Al Tanf, about 125 kilometers south of Palmyra.
The United States has maintained a military presence in Syria since 2015, when it became involved alongside Kurdish military groups in the north of the country in an attempt to expel ISIS, which occupied parts of Syria and Iraq, from control of those regions.
After toppling ISIS from any hold on power, the United States maintained part of its deployment to control the last active pockets of Islamist terrorists.
The attack comes as Donald Trump’s government has forged close ties with the Syria of Ahmed al Sharaa, the Islamist insurgent who succeeded in ousting dictator Bashar al Assad from power a year ago and is the country’s interim president.
Trump even invited Al Sharaa, who was one of the leaders of Al-Qaeda in the region, to the White House and wants his government to be a pillar of stability and the fight against terrorism in the region.
The attack on Palmyra – a UNESCO World Heritage city for its famous Roman ruins – is the first in which Americans have died since Al Sharaa came to power and shows that such stability is far from being achieved in Syria.
Donald Trump detailed in a message on his social network that the three wounded soldiers were progressing well, he assured that it was an attack “against Syria and the United States”. and made it clear that Al Sharaa “is extremely angry and shocked by this attack.”
“There will be significant retaliation,” Trump announced, referring to possible military response operations against Daesh in the region.
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