Twenty-two US service members suffered injuries in a helicopter “mishap” in northeast Syria on Sunday, according to an announcement by the US military late Monday.
The military, however, did not disclose any details about the incident’s cause or the injuries’ severity.
The US military’s Central Command revealed that 10 service members were evacuated to higher-level care facilities outside the region for treatment. No reports of enemy fire were documented in the incident, and the cause is currently under investigation.
Current Deployment of US Troops in Syria
About 900 US personnel are deployed to Syria, mostly in the east. They form part of a mission fighting the remnants of Daesh. In recent years, these American troops have experienced repeated attacks from Iran-backed militia.
In a specific incident in March, 25 US troops were wounded during strikes and counter-strikes in Syria, which resulted in the death of a US contractor and injury to another.
US forces first entered Syria during the Obama administration’s campaign against Daesh. Their primary partner in this mission has been a Kurdish-led group, the Syrian Democratic Forces.
The Present State of Daesh and Security Concerns
Today, Daesh remains a fragment of the group that once ruled over a third of Syria and Iraq, asserting a caliphate in 2014. However, hundreds of fighters are still holed up in desolate areas where neither the US-led coalition nor the Syrian army, with support from Russia and Iranian-backed militias, have full control.
Thousands of other Daesh fighters are being held in detention facilities guarded by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, America’s key ally in the country.
US officials express concerns that Daesh could still regenerate into a major threat. The attacks from Iran-backed militia on US forces serve as a grim reminder of the complex geopolitics of Syria, where Syrian President Bashar al-Assad relies on Iran and Russia’s support and views American troops as occupiers.
Additional news input was taken from Reuters
