By Anthony Iafrate
The Defense Department carried out airstrikes against ISIS targets in Syria, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced Saturday afternoon.
CENTCOM wrote in a statement posted to X it conducted “large-scale strikes against multiple ISIS targets across Syria” at about 12:30 p.m. EST “alongside partner forces.”
“The strikes today targeted ISIS throughout Syria as part of our ongoing commitment to root out Islamic terrorism against our warfighters, prevent future attacks, and protect American and partner forces in the region. U.S. and coalition forces remain resolute in pursuing terrorists who seek to harm the United States,” CENTCOM wrote. (RELATED: ‘Peace In The Middle East’: Trump Defends Having Troops In Syria After Deadly Attack)
“Our message remains strong: if you harm our warfighters, we will find you and kill you anywhere in the world, no matter how hard you try to evade justice,” CENTCOM added.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth replied to CENTCOM’s statement on X, simply writing, “We will never forget, and never relent.”
The Saturday operation marked the second time in weeks the U.S. launched strikes against the radical Islamic terror group in Syria.
At President Donald Trump’s direction, CENTCOM launched strikes Dec. 19 against over 70 ISIS targets across central Syria, marking the beginning of Operation Hawkeye Strike. The operation was a direct response to a Dec. 13 ISIS attack in Syria which killed two U.S. service members and one U.S. civilian.
The terror group killed two Iowa National Guardsmen — Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29 — and a civilian interpreter in the Middle Eastern country.
“This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa was “extremely angry and disturbed by this attack.”
“There will be very serious retaliation,” the president added.
