Two soldiers and an American civilian interpreter have been killed in an ambush by Islamic State militants in central Syria, the Pentagon confirmed.
Several others were wounded in the attack near Palmyra, the first incident to cause US casualties since the fall of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad a year ago.
President Donald Trump described the victims as “three great patriots” and said the wounded were “doing pretty well”. He vowed retaliation, calling the assault “an Isis attack on us and Syria”.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the soldiers had been conducting a “key leader engagement” in support of counter-terrorism operations when they came under fire. Defence secretary Pete Hegseth later confirmed the attacker was killed by partner forces.
US Central Command stated that the identities of the dead would be withheld until families had been notified.
Syrian state media reported that shots were fired at Syrian and US forces during the visit to Palmyra. According to the Sana news agency, two Syrian security personnel and several US service members were injured and evacuated by helicopter to the al-Tanf garrison near the Iraqi and Jordanian borders.
Syria’s interior ministry said a gunman linked to Islamic State opened fire at the gate of a military post. Officials are investigating whether the attacker was a member of the group or simply inspired by its ideology.
The United States maintains hundreds of troops in eastern Syria as part of the coalition against Islamic State. Last month, Syria formally joined the coalition as relations with western governments improved following Assad’s removal. Interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former Islamist militant, visited Washington in November for talks with Trump.
Although Islamic State was declared defeated in Syria in 2019, sleeper cells continue to stage deadly attacks. The United Nations estimates the group still has between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters across Syria and Iraq.
US forces have previously been targeted in Syria. In 2019, a blast in Manbij killed two American soldiers, two US civilians and several Syrians during a patrol. The latest attack underscores the continuing threat posed by Islamic State despite years of international efforts to dismantle its networks.
