Two U.S. soldiers and one civilian U.S. interpreter were killed in Syria on Saturday after they were ambushed by a likely ISIS gunman, U.S. officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The gunman was killed by “partner forces” during a skirmish, according to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Three other service members were injured during the incident in Palmyra, Syria, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement. Two U.S. officials told ABC News the wounded were American.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“The attack occurred as the soldiers were conducting a key leader engagement. Their mission was in support of on-going counter-ISIS \/ counter-terrorism operations in the region,” Parnell said in a statement.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n This marked the first combat deaths since President Donald Trump returned to the Oval Office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump took to social media Saturday to express his condolences for the fallen soldiers, and condemn the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he said in the post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump claimed the incident was an “ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The president echoed his statements with brief remarks to the press Saturday, reiterating as he walked away from reporters, “We will retaliate.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The identities of the soldiers were not immediately revealed due to ongoing next-of-kin notifications, officials said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The three American fatalities in today\u2019s attack in Syria are the first combat deaths in that country since 2019 when four Americans were killed in a suicide bomb attack in Manbij, Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prior to Saturday, there had been 10 U.S. military deaths in Syria, including a mix of hostile and non-hostile deaths. The most recent U.S. military death in Syria was a non-hostile death in February 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n