Two US service members and a US civilian interpreter were killed in Syria on 13 December after an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman, according to US Central Command. Three additional US service members were injured.
USCENTCOM said the attack occurred while the personnel were conducting a “key leader engagement” in a volatile part of Syria. The attacker was engaged and killed at the scene. The identities of those killed are being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
President Donald Trump said the US was mourning “the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers and one civilian interpreter”, adding that the three injured soldiers were “doing well”.
“This was an ISIS attack against the US and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them,” Trump said.
He added that Syria’s President, Ahmed al-Sharaa, was “extremely angry and disturbed by this attack” and warned that “there will be very serious retaliation”. The Pentagon confirmed the incident and said further updates would be released as more information becomes available.
