In Response to the Palmyra Attack... US Strikes in Syria Result in ISIS Deaths

A US aircraft loaded with munitions (AFP).

US nighttime strikes on sites in Syria have resulted in the deaths of at least five members of the ISIS organization, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Saturday, a week after an attack that killed three Americans in Palmyra in central Syria.

The United States announced it "struck more than 70 targets across central Syria using fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery" in what President Donald Trump described as a "very strong retaliatory strike" in response to the shooting on December 13 that killed three Americans, including two soldiers, in Palmyra in Homs province, central Syria.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said via X: "US forces have launched Operation Eagle Strike in Syria to eliminate fighters, infrastructure, and weapons storage sites" of the organization.

Washington attributed the Palmyra attack to ISIS, although the group has not claimed responsibility.

This was the first incident of its kind since the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024. According to authorities, it was carried out by a member of the security forces who held extremist views.

In this context, the Jordanian army announced it participated in strikes with the coalition on ISIS sites in southern Syria.

In a statement, it said: "We are working with the coalition to prevent extremist groups from organizing themselves on our borders."

Additionally, Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Observatory, told AFP that among the dead was "the leader of a cell responsible for drones" in Deir ez-Zor (east).

A Syrian security source told AFP that the US raids targeted "ISIS cells in the vast Syrian desert, including in the provinces of Homs (central), Deir ez-Zor (east), and Raqqa (northeast), and did not include ground operations."

The source added that most targets were in mountainous areas.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced in a statement that it "struck more than 70 targets across central Syria using fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery."

"Heavy Bombardment"

The CENTCOM statement said that "more than 100 types of precision-guided munitions" were used during the operation.

A Syrian security official, who requested anonymity, told AFP that "the bombardment was intense, and explosions were heard throughout the desert area," adding that the bombing lasted five hours.

He continued, "The targets were far from populated areas, and there were no cases of displacement."

Shortly after the US airstrikes, the Syrian Foreign Ministry confirmed in a Saturday statement "Syria's firm commitment to combating ISIS and ensuring there are no safe havens for it on Syrian territory," without directly referring to the strikes.

It affirmed that Syrian authorities "will continue to intensify military operations against the organization in all threatened areas."

After the Pentagon announced the launch of the military operation, the US president wrote on his platform Truth Social, "We are delivering very strong strikes" in response to the Palmyra attack.

CENTCOM said that since Saturday's attack, "the United States and its allied forces have conducted 10 operations in Syria and Iraq resulting in the killing or arrest of 23 terrorist elements," without specifying the groups they belong to.

ISIS was defeated in Syria in 2019 but still maintains cells, especially in the desert.

Damascus officially joined the international coalition against ISIS during transitional Syrian President Ahmad al-Shara's visit to Washington last month.

US forces are mainly deployed in areas controlled by Kurdish fighters in northern and northeastern Syria, in addition to the Al-Tanf base near the Jordanian border, where Washington focuses its military presence on combating the organization and supporting its local allies.