Two American troops and a civilian interpreter were killed in Syria on Saturday after an alleged member of the Islamic State group opened fire on a joint US-Syrian patrol.
United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the deaths on X after Syria’s state media earlier reported an attack in the city of Palmyra had wounded American and Syrian troops.
CENTCOM, which oversees the US military in the Middle East, said “an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman” resulted in the three Americans’ deaths as well as injuries to three additional troops.
“The gunman was engaged and killed,” it said.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the attack occurred as the soldiers “were conducting a key leader engagement” in support of counter-terrorism operations, while US envoy to Syria Tom Barrack said the ambush targeted “a joint US–Syrian government patrol.”
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“The savage who perpetrated this attack was killed by partner forces,” US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote on X.
Parnell said the identities of the deceased troops would be withheld until after their families were notified.
The incident is the first of its kind reported since Islamist-led forces overthrew longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, and rekindled the country’s ties with the United States.
US forces are deployed in Syria’s Kurdish-controlled northeast as well as at Al-Tanf near the border with Jordan.
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