US Military Reports 3 Americans Killed by IS Gunman in Syria

Two US soldiers and a US civilian interpreter have been killed in an ambush by an Islamic State (IS) gunman in Syria, according to the US Central Command (Centcom).

Officials reported that three other US service members sustained injuries during the attack. The gunman was reportedly “engaged and killed”. Syria’s state news agency also indicated that two Syrian service personnel were injured in the incident.

US President Donald Trump, writing on social media, described the attack as “an ISIS attack” against both the US and Syria, vowing “a very serious retaliation”. Syria’s president has since offered his condolences to President Trump.

In a subsequent update on Sunday, President Trump announced that two of the injured American personnel had been discharged from the hospital and were “doing well”.

The identities of the deceased are being withheld pending notification of their next of kin, the military stated.

Centcom confirmed in a post on X that the attack was “the result of an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman.” A Pentagon official added that initial assessments pointed towards the Islamic State group as the perpetrators.

However, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the attacker was actually a member of the Syrian security force.

As of now, no group has officially claimed responsibility for the ambush, and the identity of the gunman remains undisclosed.

According to Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell, the ambush took place in Palmyra, located in central Syria, while the soldiers were “conducting a key leader engagement.” He also confirmed the attack is currently under investigation.

A Pentagon official clarified: “This attack took place in an area where the Syrian president does not have control.”

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a stark warning: “Let it be known, if you target Americans – anywhere in the world you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you.”

Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, in a post on X, condemned the attack, expressing condolences to the families of the victims.

Tom Barrack, US ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, stated: “I strongly condemn the cowardly terrorist ambush targeting a joint US–Syrian government patrol in central Syria. We remain committed to defeating terrorism with our Syrian partners.”

The incident follows a recent meeting last month between President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Donald Trump at the White House, which the Syrian leader hailed as the beginning of a “new era” in relations between the two countries.

Syria has recently joined an international coalition dedicated to combating IS and has pledged its full cooperation with the US. The coalition aims to eliminate remaining IS elements and curb the flow of foreign fighters to the Middle East.

While a US-backed alliance of Syrian fighters announced the territorial defeat of IS in Syria in 2019, the jihadist group has continued to conduct attacks. The United Nations estimates that IS still maintains between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.

US troops have been stationed in Syria since 2015, primarily to train and support local forces in the ongoing fight against IS.

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