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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FBI arrests U.S. Army members for "betraying country"

A former soldier and two active-duty soldiers who were planning to send national defense information to China have been arrested, the Justice Department announced Thursday. 

Jian Zhao, and Li Tian, both active duty Army soldiers based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, and former soldier Ruoyu Duan had been charged for stealing U.S. military secrets on top secret hard drives, which contained information on weapon systems and documents on missile defenses, the DOJ announced.

“The defendants arrested today are accused of betraying our country, actively working to weaken America’s defense capabilities and empowering our adversaries in China,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi. “They will face swift, severe, and comprehensive justice.”

Now all we need is for MSNBC to defend these traitors and Kamala Harris start a GoFundMe account to that end.

Tian and Duan were charged in Oregon with conspiring to commit bribery and theft of government property. Zhao was charged in Washington with conspiring to obtain and transmit national defense information, and for bribery and theft of government property.

“While bribery and corruption have thrived under China’s Communist Party, this behavior cannot be tolerated with our service members who are entrusted with sensitive military information, including national defense information,” FBI Director Kash Patel said. “The FBI and our partners will continue to work to uncover attempts by those in China to steal sensitive U.S. military information and hold all accountable who play a role in betraying our national defense.”

According to the legal documents, Duan and Tian were involved in a conspiracy that began on or around November 28, 2021. The plan was to steal information on America’s operational capabilities by stealing technical manuals and other documentation. The scheme was active as recently as December 19, 2024, the DOJ said. Duan allegedly paid Tian to steal information on the Bradley and Stryker U.S. Army fighting vehicles.

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Zhao is accused of selling hard drives after July 2024 marked “SECRET” and “TOP SECRET” to people in China for around $10,000. He is also accused of stealing a government computer with information on the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System and information related to a potential conflict between the U.S. and China. 

“These arrests underscore the persistent and increasing foreign intelligence threat facing our Army and nation,” said Brig. Gen. Rhett Cox of Army Counterintelligence Command. “Along with the Department of Justice and FBI, Army Counterintelligence Command will continue to work tirelessly to hold those accountable who irresponsibly and selfishly abandon the Army values and choose personal gain over duty to our nation.”

Finally, FAFO has come to fruition.  

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CT man lied about being US war hero to his wife and the public--she now has dumped him

A man from Connecticut fighting for Ukraine has for decades lied to everyone, including his now former wife, about being a US war hero. After learning of his stolen valor, she ditched the marriage. [H/T New York Post]

James Vasquez, 48, became one of the most high-profile Americans to get over to Ukraine and help thwart the Russian invasion. Being the legend in his own mind that he claimed to be, he shared dramatic images from the front lines and also created controversy by claiming to have access to American weapons.

Vasquez constantly claimed to be a decorated US Army sergeant who unselfishly and quite heroically shared his incredible skill-set he acquired from his imaginary tours in Afghanistan and Iraq.

“I was in Kuwait during Desert Storm, and I was in Iraq after 9/11 … This is a whole different animal,” Vasquez bragged in an online interview pleading for funds to help his brave Ukraine war efforts.

But eventually, Vasquez, a Norwalk-based home improvement contractor, has admitted to the New York Times that he’d misrepresented [as in 'lied'] his military record for decades — and was kicked out of the Army Reserves before ever going to war.

The Pentagon confirmed that he’d never been deployed, and had only been a private first class — the second lowest rank one can have in the Army— rather than a battle-tested sergeant.

Vasquez poses with George Castanza of 'Seinfeld' fame

“I had to tell a million lies to get ahead,” Vasquez told the Times. However, he refused to elaborate on why he’d been kicked out of the military, where he specialized in fuel and electrical repairs rather than combat and heroic stuff.

“I didn’t realize it was going to come to this,” he said of the exposé, meaning: he didn't think he'd get caught.

His confession was an even bigger shock to his now-ex-wife Tina Vasquez, who had proudly told The Post when her husband first flew to Ukraine that war was “in his DNA.”

“He did the same thing after 9/11, rushed in to help. That’s just who he is — he’s my hero,” she proudly said at the time.

On Monday, she told The Post that she “was just as shocked as anybody else” to see her now-ex’s confessional.“It was just devastating to me. He fooled everybody.” 

“I believed him. The war stories that had supposedly happened brought tears to his eyes. I felt terrible for what [he said] he had to go through and endure — and then come to find out it was all just a lie,” she said.

“Here I am, I’m with him for 11 years and I don’t even know the man I married.

“You think you know somebody and it just blows up in your face,” she said, adding it all “seems like a dream.”

Tina filed for divorce over “other personal reasons” last July when her charlatan husband announced he was heading back to Ukraine for a second time after a few months back in the US. The divorce is now finalized.

The Post could not immediately contact Vasquez, who has since deactivated the Twitter account he used to share his now-questionable tales of conflict alongside Ukraine’s far-right Da Vinci’s Wolves battalion.

“He’s a ghost now — nobody knows where he is,” his ex-wife said, saying that former friends have also been unable to get through to him but believe he is now back in the US possibly working for Uber Eats.

“He needs help and I hope he gets the help that he needs. I pray for him every day,” she said.

Vasquez had confessed to the Times as part of a larger exposé of Americans aiding Ukraine’s war efforts despite problematic pasts.

The only remaining question Americans have is "which political party did this guy belong to?"

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First Gender Dysphoric Army Officer Revealed To Be A Russian Spy

Where's Bernie Sanders?

The US Army's first officer with gender dysphoria has been indicted for trying to pass medical information to Russia as a way of helping their lunatic dictator Vladimir Putin's attempted takeover of Ukraine.

A grand jury came to the conclusion that Jamie Lee Henry, who is a Major in the Army, a female with gender dysphoria, and her wife Anna Gabrielian committed conspiracy and illegally disclosed “individually identifiable health information.” The indictment was unsealed on Thursday after the two were arrested.

BREAKING: First openly trans Army officer charged in plot to give U.S. military medical info to Russians to help in war against Ukraine – https://t.co/apHT1vYazs pic.twitter.com/AmJ6jMmEfr

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) September 29, 2022

The loving mentally ill couple allegedly met with the UC, who they believed to be associated with the Russian government but was actually an undercover FBI agent. They met in the UC's hotel room where Henry explained to the UC that she [who believes she's a 'he'] was "committed" to assisting Russia. Gabrielian told the UC that, while Henry knew of her interaction with the Russian Embassy, she never mentioned Henry's name to the Russian Embassy. Gabrielian want to ensure that Henry would have plausible denial of her actions.

During the meeting Henry explained to the UC that she was committed to assisting Russia and tried to volunteer with the Russian Army after the Russians invaded Ukraine, but Russia wanted people with "combat experience" and she had none.

 Henry also said, “the way I am viewing what is going on in Ukraine now, is that the United States is using Ukrainians as a proxy for their own hatred toward Russia.” 

Then the two married women allegedly offered to provide the UC with private medical records from the US Army and Medical Institution to help the Russian government.

Anna Gabrielian: in the female role

During the same meeting with the undercover FBI agent, Gabrielian demanded that if she were put at significant risk of arrest, she wanted her and Henry’s children to, “have a nice flight to Turkey to go on vacation because I don’t want to end in jail here with my kids being hostages over my head.” 

Henry also indicated that she was concerned about passing a background check for her security clearance, telling the UC, “I don’t want to know your name . . . because I want plausible deniability too. In a security clearance situation they want to know names and people and all this stuff.”

Both women are doctors at Johns Hopkins University but the institution has since cleaned up its website and removed any mention of Gabrielian.

The indictment by a federal grand jury charging Gabrielian, 36, and her "husband" Jamie Lee Henry, 39, both of Rockville, MD, with conspiracy and for disclosure of individually identifiable health information, related to their attempts to assist Russia in connection with Ukraine was returned on Sept. 28, 2022.

It's clear that we live in a woke society today, but perhaps it would be wise if the military would stop affirming people's mental illnesses. That should be a no-brainer but it isn't. The idea that people can be so mentally disturbed that they actually believe they are the opposite sex and seek to cosmetically change the appearance of their genitals and otherwise mutilate their bodies, should be grounds for denying highly classified security clearances.

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As it stands now, the loving couple could face a long stretch in the slammer and hopefully they will. But if it comes to that, you can almost put money on the idea that this administration will excuse their traitorous behavior.

Henry being the first gender dysphoric officer in the US Army probably won’t be something the transgender lobby takes credit for any more.

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