ISIS gunman kills 2 U.S. troops and a U.S. civilian in Syria ambush; attacker dead, CENTCOM says
Two U.S. service members and a U.S. civilian were killed and three other service members were wounded when a lone ISIS (Daesh) gunman ambushed a joint operation in Syria on Dec. 13, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Saturday. The assailant was engaged and killed at the scene, according to a CENTCOM statement posted on X.
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Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the civilian killed was a U.S. interpreter. CENTCOM did not immediately release additional details about the victims or their units.
Syria’s Interior Ministry said the attack unfolded at the entrance to a security headquarters in the Palmyra desert area, known as the Badiya. Spokesperson Nour al-Din al-Baba told state-run Alikhbaria TV that the internal security directorate had issued prior warnings to partner forces in the region about potential ISIS breaches but said those warnings were not heeded by international coalition forces.
Al-Baba said authorities are examining whether the attacker had direct organizational links to ISIS or was acting out of ideological allegiance. He added that the assailant had no ties to Syria’s internal security forces and was not serving as an escort to leadership. Media reports earlier said two Syrian security personnel were also injured in the incident.
U.S. Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack condemned the ambush as a “cowardly terrorist” attack and offered condolences to the families of the fallen. “We remain committed to defeating terrorism with our Syrian partners,” he wrote on X, calling the incident “a stark and outrageous reminder that terrorism remains a vicious and persistent threat.”
In a separate statement, Barrack said a limited number of U.S. forces remain deployed in Syria to ensure ISIS cannot reconstitute and to protect the American homeland from terrorist attacks. He said the U.S. presence enables local Syrian partners to fight ISIS on the ground and helps avoid another large-scale U.S. war in the Middle East. “We will not waver in this mission until ISIS is utterly destroyed, and any attack on Americans will be met with swift and unrelenting justice,” he said.
Barrack also welcomed what he described as the “strong commitment” of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa to identify and hold accountable those responsible for the attack. Syria’s foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, issued a separate statement on X condemning the ambush near Palmyra, extending condolences to the U.S. government and people, and wishing the wounded a speedy recovery.
U.S. forces operate in Syria as part of an international coalition formed under U.S. leadership in 2014 to defeat ISIS. Damascus, which was not part of the coalition for most of the campaign, joined on Nov. 12, 2025, according to Syrian and U.S. officials. Syria’s new administration, which took power after the overthrow of former regime leader Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, has pledged to restore security and stability across the country while partnering with international forces to combat ISIS remnants.
Saturday’s statements offered no immediate claim of responsibility by ISIS media channels. The investigation into the attacker’s affiliations and possible support network is ongoing, Syrian authorities said.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
