US hits over 70 IS-linked targets in Syria in massive retaliatory strikes

WASHINGTON -- The US military struck more than 70 suspected Islamic State-linked targets across central Syria on Friday in retaliation for a recent attack that killed two US soldiers, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said.

"This operation is critical to preventing ISIS from inspiring terrorist plots and attacks against the US homeland," Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM, said in a statement. "We will continue to relentlessly pursue terrorists who seek to harm Americans and our partners across the region."

The operation, supported by fighter aircraft from Jordanian Armed Forces, employed more than 100 precision munitions targeting known IS infrastructure and weapons sites, the statement said.

US President Donald Trump said Friday on his Truth Social that the Syrian government fully supported the strikes, warning that all terrorists "will be hit harder than you have ever been hit before" if they, in any way, attack or threaten the United States.

Syria "reiterates its steadfast commitment to fighting ISIS and ensuring that it has no safe havens on Syrian territory, and will continue to intensify military operations against it wherever it poses a threat," Syria's ministry of foreign affairs and expatriates said Friday on its official X account.

"The Syrian Arab Republic invites the United States and member states of the international coalition to support these efforts in a manner that contributes to the protection of civilians and the restoration of security and stability in the region," it added.

"This is not the beginning of a war -- it is a declaration of vengeance," said US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in a post on the social platform X, noting the strikes are "in direct response to the attack on US forces" on Dec 13 in Palmyra, Syria.

According to CENTCOM, two US service members and one US civilian were killed, and three other service members were injured, in an ambush by a lone IS gunman in Syria on Dec 13. Following the attack, US and partner forces conducted 10 operations in Syria and Iraq, resulting in the deaths or detention of 23 terrorist operatives.

Over the last six months, US and partner forces in Syria have launched more than 80 operations "to eliminate terrorists posing a direct threat to the United States and regional security," CENTCOM said.

The New York Times reported that the massive strikes were expected to last several hours, deep into early Saturday morning in Syria. The US military presence in Syria has been reduced to about 1,000 troops, it added.

No group has claimed responsibility for the Dec 13 attack. Syria's Ministry of Interior Affairs earlier identified the attacker as a member of Syria's internal security service.

IS lost most of the territory it once controlled in Syria and Iraq, but US officials said remnants of the group continue to stage insurgent attacks and pose a persistent security threat in the region.