Published
SyriaOne person was killed in an American helicopter attack
US forces have been operating in Syrian government-held territory for the first time since the war began in 2011.
The intervention took place near the Kurdish town of Qamichli. (Archive)
AFP
Several US military helicopters carried out an operation in northeastern Syria, killing one person, official Syrian television reported Thursday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH) said it was the first helicopter operation by US troops in government-held territory since the war in Syria began in 2011.
The overnight operation by the “US occupier” took place in an area near the Kurdish town of Qamichli, state television said. Multiple AFP sources said it targeted a village controlled by Syrian government forces. The US Middle East Command (CENTCOM) indicated that it was not immediately available for comment on the matter.
Exchange of fire
According to one villager, “three American helicopters carrying troops landed at dawn and called on loudspeakers for residents to stay at home.” US forces “searched a house and killed one person”, before “abducting” two others from the same house, he said.
A pro-regime force in the village fired on opposing US soldiers, adding to this witness, and accordingly a member of this force was also abducted. On June 16, the US military announced it had captured the leader of the Islamic State (IS) group during a helicopter operation in a village in northern Syria outside the control of Damascus forces.
(AFP)
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