Trump says US launches large-scale attacks on ISIL in Syria

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says attacks are ‘a declaration of vengeance’, and ‘lots’ of fighters person been killed.

The United States subject is “striking precise earnestly against ISIS [ISIL] strongholds successful Syria”, President Donald Trump says, a week aft 2 US soldiers and an interpreter were killed successful Syria’s Palmyra city/

“Because of ISIS’s vicious sidesplitting of brave American Patriots successful Syria… I americium hereby announcing that the United States is inflicting precise superior retaliation, conscionable arsenic I promised, connected the murderous terrorists responsible,” Trump wrote connected his Truth Social level connected Friday.

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Trump said that Syria’s government, which was formed aft the autumn of the Bashar al-Assad authorities successful precocious 2024, was “fully successful support” of the US subject operation.

Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs besides responded, repeating its committedness to combating ISIL.

“The Syrian Arab Republic reiterates its steadfast committedness to warring ISIS and ensuring that it has nary harmless havens connected Syrian territory, and volition proceed to intensify subject operations against it wherever it poses a threat,” the Ministry said successful the connection shared connected X.

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said earlier that the strikes targeted “ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites”, adding that the cognition was named Operation Hawkeye Strike.

“This is not the opening of a warfare — it is simply a declaration of vengeance,” Hegseth said successful a station connected societal media. “Today, we hunted and we killed our enemies. Lots of them. And we volition continue.”

Two US officials, speaking connected information of anonymity, told the Reuters quality bureau that the strikes were against dozens of ISIL targets crossed cardinal Syria.

Al Jazeera’s Rosiland Jordan, reporting from Washington, DC, said that the societal media posts from Trump and Hegseth amusement that the White House is reiterating the constituent that the sidesplitting of US unit successful Syria “was going to beryllium met with a comparable response”.

Details connected what targets had been deed and the fig of radical injured oregon killed were not yet known, but the US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said it would beryllium releasing much accusation soon.

Jordan besides said that it appeared the Syrian authorities had “signed off” connected the US operation.

“We don’t cognize whether immoderate Syrian defence forces are taking portion successful this retaliatory action, but the US does see it important to effort to assistance Syria determination beyond the Assad regime’s years of dictatorship,” Jordan said.

“In bid to bash so, getting escaped of what the US considers a nationalist information menace – members of ISIL – is portion of helping Syria determination into its adjacent signifier arsenic a sovereign country,” she added.

Three Americans, including 2 US National Guard members and a civilian interpreter, were killed past weekend successful the cardinal Syrian municipality of Palmyra by an attacker who targeted a convoy of US and Syrian forces earlier being changeable dead, according to the US military.

Three US soldiers were besides wounded successful the attack.

About 1,000 US troops are stationed successful Syria arsenic portion of a years-long cognition targeting the remnants of ISIL forces successful the region.

A US-led conjugation has besides carried retired aerial strikes and crushed operations successful Syria targeting ISIL suspects successful caller months, often with the engagement of Syria’s information forces.

Syria’s government, which is present led by erstwhile rebels who toppled the Assad regime, has been cooperating successful the US-led combat against ISIL. An statement connected practice was reached past period erstwhile the country’s interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, met with Trump astatine the White House.