Pentagon announces Syria operation in response to attack on US troops

• The US military launched "Operation Hawkeye Strike" in Syria to eliminate Daesh infrastructure and fighters in retaliation for a December 13 attack in Palmyra that killed two US soldiers and one American civilian.
• President Trump and Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth characterized the operation as "serious retaliation" and a "declaration of vengeance," signaling a firm military response despite previous plans to reduce the US troop presence in the region.

US forces have launched an operation against Daesh in Syria in response to an attack in Palmyra that left three Americans dead, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said Friday.

"US forces commenced OPERATION HAWKEYE STRIKE in Syria to eliminate [Daesh] fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites in direct response to the attack on US forces that occurred on December 13th," Hegseth wrote on X.

“This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance. The United States of America, under President Trump’s leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people,” he added. 

US President Donald Trump said the US military had launched "very serious retaliation" against Daesh. 

"I am hereby announcing that the United States is inflicting very serious retaliation, just as I promised, on the murderous terrorists responsible," Trump said on his Truth Social network.

"We are striking very strongly against [Daesh] strongholds in Syria, a place soaked in blood which has many problems, but one that has a bright future if [Daesh] can be eradicated," he wrote, using an acronym for the group.

Two US soldiers and an American civilian were shot dead in Syria last weekend.

US Central Command said at the time that a lone gunman from Daesh carried out the attack on Saturday in Palmyra -- home to UNESCO-listed ancient ruins and once controlled by the terrorist organization -- which also wounded three other service members.

Those killed were Iowa National Guard sergeants William Howard and Edgar Torres Tovar, and Ayad Mansoor Sakat, a civilian from Michigan who worked as an interpreter.

The US personnel were supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, the international effort to combat Daesh, which seized swaths of Syrian and Iraqi territory in 2014.

The fighters were ultimately defeated by local ground forces backed by international air strikes and other support, but Daesh still has a presence in Syria, especially in the country's vast desert.

Trump has long been skeptical of Washington's presence in Syria, ordering the withdrawal of troops during his first term but ultimately leaving American forces in the country.

The Pentagon announced in April that the United States would halve the number of US personnel in Syria in the following months, while US envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said in June that Washington would eventually reduce its bases in the country to one.

US forces are currently deployed in Syria's Kurdish-controlled northeast as well as at Al-Tanf near the border with Jordan.