US military says American troops were at risk from Turkish strike on base in Syria this week

The US army says American troops had been put in danger from a Turkish drone strike Tuesday on a base in Syria.

“We now have acquired further info that there was a danger to US Troops and personnel,” US Central Command stated in a brief assertion on Wednesday. No US service members had been injured within the strike, CENTCOM stated. They declined to supply any additional info on what number of troops had been put in danger or the place they had been positioned in relation to the assault.

On Wednesday, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Mark Milley spoke to his Turkish counterpart, Gen. Yasar Guler. The readout didn’t provide particulars of the dialog, nevertheless it says the 2 spoke about “a number of gadgets of mutual strategic curiosity.”

The bottom close to Hasakah, Syria, is utilized by the US-led coalition to defeat ISIS and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF stated two of their fighters had been killed within the strike.

It’s vital that the US has publicly stated American troops had been put in danger, as a result of Turkey is a NATO ally and a crucial associate for the US within the area. On the similar time, the SDF are additionally US companions and a play a key position in US-led coalition’s mission to defeat ISIS.

Within the preliminary assertion in regards to the strike on Tuesday, CENTCOM spokesman Col. Joe Buccino stated US troops weren’t on the base. In an announcement on Tuesday Buccino stated, “We oppose any army motion that destabilizes the scenario in Syria. These actions threaten our shared targets, together with the continued struggle in opposition to ISIS to make sure the group can by no means resurge and threaten the area.”

“Turkey does proceed to endure a respectable terrorist risk, notably to their south. They actually have each proper to defend themselves and their residents,” stated Nationwide Safety Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby on a name with reporters Tuesday. “What considerations us about cross-border operations stays the identical … that it would power a response by a few of our SDF companions that may restrict or constrain their capacity to struggle in opposition to ISIS, and that’s what we’re doing on the bottom with them.”