Two U.S. soldiers and a U.S. civilian interpreter were killed in an ambush by Islamic State (IS) militants in Syria, U.S. Central Command said.
Officials said that three other soldiers were injured in the attack, and that the gunman died in the exchange of fire.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on social media: “This is an ISIS attack on the United States and Syria,” and said there would be “very serious retaliation.”
U.S. Central Command said the identities of the dead were being withheld for 24 hours until next of kin were notified.
U.S. Central Command said in a post on
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the attackers were members of the Syrian security forces.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack and the identity of the gunman has not been released.
The ambush occurred in Palmyra, located in the center of the country, while soldiers were “conducting key leadership engagements,” according to Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell.
“This attack occurred in an area beyond the control of the Syrian president,” a Pentagon official said.
Trump added that the three wounded U.S. soldiers were “doing well.” Syrian state news reported that two Syrian soldiers were also wounded.
“If you target Americans, you will spend the rest of your short, anxious life knowing that the United States will track you, find you, and kill you mercilessly, no matter where you are in the world,” said Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.
Syria recently joined the international coalition to defeat IS and pledged to cooperate with the United States.
Last month, President Ahmed al-Shara met Donald Trump on a visit to the White House and said the Syrian leader was part of a “new era” for both countries.
The global coalition aims to eliminate the remaining forces of the so-called Islamic State (IS) and block the flow of foreign militants to the Middle East.
“We strongly condemn the cowardly terrorist ambush that targeted a joint U.S. and Syrian government patrol in central Syria,” said Tom Barrack, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy for Syria.
“We continue to work with our Syrian partners to combat terrorism.”
