SRINAGAR: Two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed on Saturday after a suspected ISIS militant opened fire on a joint US–Syrian patrol in central Syria, officials said, in one of the deadliest attacks on US personnel in the country in recent months, according to BBC report.
US Central Command later confirmed the fatalities, saying the incident occurred near the ancient city of Palmyra, where an ambush by a lone gunman also left three other troops wounded. The attacker was subsequently engaged and killed by forces at the scene, according to a military statement cited by AP.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the troops were conducting a “key leader engagement” as part of counter-terrorism operations when the shooting took place. US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said the attack targeted a joint patrol involving American and Syrian government forces, the New York Times reported.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the assailant was killed by partner forces, while adding that the identities of the deceased service members would be withheld until their families had been notified.
Syrian state media earlier reported that several American troops and two Syrian personnel were wounded during what it described as a joint field tour in Palmyra, an area that was once under ISIS control. A Syrian military official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the gunfire broke out during a meeting between Syrian and American officers at a military base, according to Reuters.
Witnesses said shots were heard from inside the compound, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the meeting formed part of a broader US effort to strengthen its presence in the Syrian desert.
The wounded were later evacuated by helicopter to the US-run Al-Tanf base in southern Syria, where American forces are stationed. Syria’s interior ministry said it had issued prior warnings to the US-led coalition about a possible ISIS infiltration in the region, but claimed those warnings were not acted upon.
The attack is the first such incident reported since opposition forces ousted longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December last year, a development that led to renewed engagement between Damascus and Washington. Last month, Syria formally joined the US-led global coalition against ISIS during President Ahmed al-Sharaa’s visit to Washington.
US forces remain deployed in Syria’s Kurdish-controlled north-east and at the Al-Tanf base near the Jordanian border. President Donald Trump vowed retaliation, saying the attack occurred in a dangerous area not fully under Syrian government control and warning of “very serious retaliation” against those responsible.
