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A police vehicle of the interim Syrian government moves through a street in Palmyra in central Syria on Feb. 7. On Saturday, two U.S. service members and one U.S. civilian were killed in Palmyra after an ambush by an ISIS gunman, U.S. officials said. Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
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Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images
Two U.S. service members and one U.S. civilian were killed Saturday after an ambush by an ISIS gunman in central Syria, U.S. Central Command said. Three other service members were injured.
The attack, which took place in the city of Palmyra, comes a year after the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the lifting of U.S. sanctions.
President Trump said on Truth Social that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa is "extremely angry and disturbed by this attack" and that "there will be very serious retaliation."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on social media that the gunman was killed by partner forces.
"If you target Americans — anywhere in the world — you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you," Hegseth said.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said on X that the shooting occurred "as the soldiers were concluding a key leader engagement" and their mission was to support counterterrorism operations in the region.
Since October CENTCOM said, its forces have "advised, assisted, and enabled" more than 22 operations against ISIS with partners in Syria, resulting in five ISIS members killed and 19 captured.
Parnell said Saturday's attack is currently under investigation.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
