- Sputnik International
World
Get the latest news from around the world, live coverage, off-beat stories, features and analysis.

US-Led Coalition Strikes Hit Syrian Army in Southern Syria - Reports

© REUTERS / U.S. Air Force/Senior Airman Matthew Bruch/HandoutUS Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles are designed to conduct airstrikes in Syria and Iraq
US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles are designed to conduct airstrikes in Syria and Iraq - Sputnik International
Subscribe
A US-led coalition spokesperson has confirmed that coalition strikes in southern Syria struck pro-Syrian government forces, BuzzFeed News reported on Thursday. Later, a US defense official confirmed the information to Sputnik.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The coalition strikes reportedly occurred near al-Tanf town, where US' and British special operations forces have been training Syrian rebel fighters near the border with Iraq and Jordan.

A US defense official told Sputnik that the US-led coalition struck the pro-Assad fighters near the town of al-Tanf in the area of an established deconflication zone with Russia.

According to the media outlet, US officials explain the strikes as "force protection" for the US Special Forces based in the area. Reuters cited a US official as saying that the strikes occurred after "warning shots by U.S. aircraft meant to disuade the [Syrian army's] fighters."

It is unclear yet whether the strikes have killed any Syrian soldiers or pro-government militia fighters as there has been no official comment from Damascus so far. The Pentagon has released no official statement as well.

According to a BuzzFeed News reporter, Syrian rebels based with the US Special Forces in the area said that militia supporting the Syrian army has been nearby as well.

"We notified the coalition that we were being attacked by the Syrian army and Iranians in this point and the coalition came and destroyed the advancing convoy," the Pentagon-backed rebel group called the Maghawir al Thwra told Reuters.

"A convoy going down the road didn't respond to numerous ways for it to be warned off from getting too close to coalition forces in al-Tanf," an unnamed official told AFP.

On Monday, Al-Masdr News reported that Syrian Arab Army soldiers along and militias affiliated with the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Units are preparing to recapture the nearby Tanf Border crossing from Daesh.

Media reports suggested that Syrian rebels have voiced concerns over the Syrian army getting "too close" to the US Special Forces' base in al-Tanf.

In April, Daesh terrorists attempted to take the US base near al-Tanf in which three US-backed Syrian rebels were killed.

In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, the guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) launches a tomahawk land attack missile in the Mediterranean Sea, Friday, April 7, 2017. - Sputnik International
A Look at Syrian Air Defenses That Could Not Shoot Down US Tomahawks
This was not the first time the US-led coalition intentionally or accidentally struck the Syrian army fighting against Daesh.

In the early hours of April 7, the United States launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Syrian military airfield in Ash Sha’irat, located about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the city of Homs. US President Donald Trump said the attack was a response to the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria's Idlib, which Washington blames on the Syrian government.

On September 17, 2016, US-led coalition aircraft carried out four strikes against the Syrian army near the Deir ez-Zor airport, killing 62 soldiers and wounding some 100. The Pentagon said that the airstrike was a mistake and was intended to target Daesh militants, while a number of Syrian officials stated that the attack was intentional. Later, the Pentagon released a report claiming that the US-led coalition's forces struck the Syrian army in Deir ez-Zor as a result of an "unintentional, regrettable error."

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала