Multiple sources say the gunman who ambushed U.S. and Syrian forces near Palmyra was likely an Islamic State infiltrator embedded in a local security unit. The attack killed two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter and wounded two Syrian security members. U.S. forces engaged and killed the attacker, and Syrian authorities identified him as Tarek Satouf al-Hamd while detaining 11 security personnel for questioning. President Trump vowed serious retaliation and U.S.-Syrian contacts are ongoing as the investigation continues.
Suspected ISIS Infiltrator Kills Two U.S. Soldiers and Interpreter Near Palmyra, Officials Say
Multiple sources told CBS News that the gunman who ambushed U.S. and Syrian personnel — killing two American soldiers and a civilian interpreter — is believed to have been an Islamic State infiltrator embedded inside a local Syrian security unit.
The shooting occurred on Saturday during a joint mission in a historic town near Palmyra. Two members of the Syrian security contingent were wounded in the attack. U.S. Central Command said the assailant was engaged and killed.
Immediate Response
President Trump described the incident on Truth Social as "an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them," and warned of "very serious retaliation." On Sunday he said, "We had three great patriots terminated by bad people, and not the Syrian government," and added that "There will be a lot of damage done to the people that did it."
"This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria," the President wrote, promising a response.
Syrian Accounts and Investigations
Syrian Interior Ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba told CBS News the attacker has been identified as Tarek Satouf al-Hamd. Al-Baba said Syrian authorities had flagged him as a risk the previous Wednesday and that he was serving inside the local base where Saturday's attack occurred. He added that authorities had planned to dismiss the suspect from the security force for holding "extremist Islamist ideas."
A Syrian security official told Agence France-Presse that 11 members of the general security forces were detained and taken in for questioning following the attack.
U.S. Officials and Cooperation
The State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by phone with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, who offered condolences and reiterated the Syrian government's stated commitment to "degrade and destroy the shared threat of ISIS." Joe Kent, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, described the incident as "an insider terrorist attack."
Context
The United States maintains several hundred troops in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting the Islamic State and to limit Iranian influence. About 900 U.S. personnel are currently stationed in the country, mainly in the Kurdish-controlled northeast and at the Al-Tanf base in the southeast near the Iraq and Jordan borders.
Palmyra, the nearby town with UNESCO-listed ancient ruins, was previously seized by ISIS during the group's territorial expansion in Syria.
The investigation is ongoing. U.S. and Syrian officials continue to exchange information as they probe how an individual with alleged extremist ties came to serve inside a local security unit and to determine whether additional threats remain.
