US launches large-scale strike in Syria targeting ISIS
The United States carried out major airstrikes in Syria on Dec. 19, allegedly targeting Islamic State (ISIS) infrastructure in the country in retaliation for the deaths of American soldiers in a recent terrorist attack.
"U.S. forces have commenced a large-scale strike against ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites in Syria," the Defense Department's Central Command said in a social media post.
The attack comes in response to a Dec. 13 shooting in central Syria that killed two U.S. soldiers and an American civilian interpreter. Washington attributes the killings to ISIS, though the group has not claimed responsibility for the attack and Syria's Interior Ministry has said the gunman had been part of the country's internal security service.
The U.S. has named its retaliatory strikes "Operation Hawkeye," as the two soldiers killed hailed from Iowa, nicknamed the Hawkeye State.
"This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance," U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote on X. "The United States of America, under President Trump's leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people."
Hegseth said the goal of Operation Hawkeye is to "eliminate ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites."
The U.S. military operation comes just over a month after Trump hosted Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House on Nov. 10, marking the first visit to Washington by a Syrian head of state since 1946.
Trump cast the move as support for al-Sharaa, a former rebel commander who was once labeled a terrorist by the U.S. According to a senior administration official, Syria agreed to join a global coalition against ISIS.
Trump said on Dec. 19 that al-Sharaa "is fully in support" of Washington's latest operation in Syria.
"We are striking very strongly against ISIS strongholds in Syria ... the government of Syria led by a man who is working very hard to bring greatness back to Syria, is fully in support," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Al-Sharaa's rebel coalition ousted the Russian-backed Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024.
Assad, a longtime Kremlin ally, fled to Russia in 2024 and has remained there ever since. Meanwhile, Ukraine and Syria restored relations in September during the U.N. General Assembly after al-Sharaa met President Volodymyr Zelensky.
