Trump vows forceful response after two U.S. troops and a civilian interpreter are killed in an ambush in central Syria, underscoring ongoing ISIS threat.
President Donald Trump on Saturday December 13, 2025, warned of “very serious retaliation” after two U.S. soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed in an attack in central Syria that U.S. officials attributed to the Islamic State militant group.
The deadly incident occurred near the ancient city of Palmyra, where U.S. forces were operating alongside Syrian partners. U.S. Central Command said the Americans were killed during what it described as an ambush by a lone ISIS gunman. Three additional U.S. service members were wounded. The attacker was later engaged and killed, the military said.
In a statement posted on Truth Social, Trump blamed ISIS for the attack and said Washington would respond decisively. He noted that the assault took place in a volatile part of Syria that is not fully under government control and said Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa was “extremely angry and disturbed” by the killings.
“There will be very serious retaliation,” Trump wrote, without providing details on the timing or scope of a potential response.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the U.S. personnel were in the area conducting what he described as a “key leader engagement,” part of ongoing efforts to counter extremist networks. A U.S. defense official said the attack occurred in territory beyond the effective control of the Syrian government.
Read Also: Rabies Death Linked To Transplant Triggers U.S. Health Review
Syria’s state media reported that two Syrian service members were also injured in the incident. No group has formally claimed responsibility, and the identity of the attacker has not been released. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the assailant may have been linked to Syrian security forces, a claim not confirmed by U.S. or Syrian officials.
U.S. Central Command said the names of the Americans killed were being withheld pending notification of their families.
Senior U.S. officials issued sharp warnings following the attack. Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, condemned what he called a “cowardly terrorist ambush” and reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to working with Syrian partners to defeat extremist groups.
U.S. War Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed that message in unusually blunt language, saying anyone who targets Americans “anywhere in the world” would be relentlessly pursued.
The attack comes weeks after Trump hosted Syrian President al-Sharaa at the White House, a meeting both sides described as the beginning of a new phase in relations after more than a decade of conflict. Shortly after the visit, Syria announced it would join a global coalition aimed at dismantling the remnants of ISIS.
Although ISIS lost its territorial strongholds in Syria in 2019, the United Nations estimates that between 5,000 and 7,000 fighters remain active across Syria and Iraq, continuing to mount deadly attacks and posing a persistent security challenge.