ISIS Remnants Just Ambushed and Killed American Troops in Syria

A year after the Assad regime finally collapsed Syria is still a mess. The new government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa (his ISIS name being Abu Mohammad al-Julani) is trying to get its act together, but pockets of chaos remain, especially where these Islamist holdouts like ISIS are lurking, for some reason. And unfortunately, that instability just claimed American lives.

[Al-Sharaa became President of Syria in January 2025 after a period leading to the rebel offensive that overthrew Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024.]

Two U.S. Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in an ambush in the central Syrian town of Palmyra over the weekend, with three others wounded. The Pentagon confirmed it, and it's a grim reminder that our counter-terrorism mission there isn't over yet, and al Sharaa is a terrorist who cannot be trusted.

"Today in Palmyra, Syria, two United States Army soldiers and one civilian U.S. interpreter were killed, and three were wounded," Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell wrote on X. "The attack occurred as the soldiers were conducting a key leader engagement. Their mission was in support of ongoing counter-ISIS/counter-terrorism operations in the region," he added, noting that "The soldiers’ names, as well as identifying information about their units, are being withheld until 24 hours after the next of kin notification."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth praised the response and sent a clear message to any jihadist scum thinking about targeting Americans. "The savage who perpetrated this attack was killed by partner forces."

"Let it be known, 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 also posted on X.

The attack occurred in an area where Sharaa's government doesn't have full control, and early signs point to ISIS as the culprits, what a shocker--these rats never go away. The Pentagon is investigating, and the wounded were sent via MEDEVAC to the al-Tanf base near the Iraq-Jordan border.

This comes as U.S. forces are drawing down to about 1,500 troops as of mid-year, with plans to drop to a few hundred by year's end. We've closed or handed over some of our eight bases that were keeping tabs on ISIS since we went in back in 2014 to stop their caliphate nonsense.

Meanwhile, "The United States, CIA and military forces are reportedly deeply involved in securing and stabilizing the situation in Syria," as Dan Diker from the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs told Fox News Digital.

And just this week, Syrians were celebrating in Damascus streets marking the one-year anniversary of Assad's ouster—that lightning rebel offensive that ended half a century of his family's brutal rule. It's a new chapter, but as this attack shows, the threats aren't gone. Former U.S. Ambassador Robert Ford has been warning about the challenges ahead for the new government.

Our troops are still out there doing the dirty work to keep ISIS down. This ambush is a gut punch, but Hegseth's warning is spot on: mess with Americans, and you'll regret it—briefly.

Will it? We shall see.

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