U.S. forces on Monday struck Islamic State targets in Syria, Pentagon officials said, destroying a truckload of weapons moving through an area of the country previously controlled by former dictator Bashar Assad’s troops and their Russian allies.
U.S. Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, said the airstrike in Dayr az Zawr Province killed two Islamic State operatives and wounded another. The CENTCOM statement did not specify the kinds of weapons the terrorists were moving.
Most concerning is that ISIS operatives seem to be exploiting a somewhat chaotic situation on the ground.
“This strike occurred in an area formerly controlled by the Syrian regime and Russians,” CENTCOM said.
Mr. Assad’s regime fell earlier this month after a surprise lightning offensive by the rebel alliance Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. Some of the Russian troops who for years helped prop up the Assad regime have also either redeployed or left the country, leading to fears that perhaps a power vacuum in Syria could lead to a resurgence of the Islamic State.
The U.S. doubled the number of troops in Syria, from about 900 to nearly 2,000, in the days leading up to the fall of the Assad government.
Those forces are in the country to prevent the Islamic State from capitalizing on the situation and expanding its power.
“This airstrike is part of CENTCOM’s ongoing commitment, along with partners in the region, to disrupt and degrade efforts by terrorists to plan, organize, and conduct attacks against civilians and military personnel from the U.S., our allies, and our partners throughout the region and beyond,” CENTCOM said in its statement early Tuesday.
