بـ«عين الصقر».. أمريكا تشن ضربات جوية ومدفعية ضد «داعش» في سورية

The United States launched extensive air and artillery strikes in the early hours of this morning (Saturday) targeting dozens of sites suspected of being linked to the "ISIS" organization in central Syria, in fulfillment of President Donald Trump's pledge to respond to the killing of two American soldiers in a terrorist attack last week. According to American officials, the operation was wide-ranging and involved fighter jets and attack helicopters, sending a direct message that Washington will continue to pursue the organization and target its infrastructure and weapon storage.

Regarding the strikes, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth stated that they are part of a military operation against ISIS in Syria in response to an attack in Palmyra that claimed the lives of Americans.

Hegseth said in a post on X platform: "U.S. forces have initiated Operation Eagle Strike in Syria to eliminate fighters, infrastructure, and weapon storage sites of ISIS, in direct response to the attack that targeted American forces on December 13."

The two soldiers who were killed last Saturday were the first American casualties in Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad last year. American and Syrian sources reported that the soldiers were participating in counter-terrorism operations against ISIS in the city of Palmyra in central Syria when they came under fire from a lone gunman.

The American strikes (on Friday), and the possibility of further counter-terrorism operations in the coming days, indicate a "sharp military escalation" in Syria, at a time when the United States has reduced its presence there to about a thousand soldiers, half the number it had at the beginning of the year. The decision to reduce troops reflects the changing security environment in Syria following the collapse of the Assad government.

The strikes were also confirmed by sources from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which indicated that American airstrikes targeted ISIS sites in areas east of Raqqa and west of Deir ez-Zor, resulting in the death of a prominent leader in the organization and several members of a cell responsible for attacks in Deir ez-Zor.