Islamic State group targets US convoy in northeastern Syria

BEIRUT, Lebanon - An Islamic State suicide bomber targeted a joint convoy of the United States and allied Kurdish forces in northern Syria on Monday, marking the second attack against US troops in less than a week and further highlighting the dangers surrounding US plans to withdraw forces after a declaration that the extremist group had been defeated.

The attack happened on a checkpoint on the edge of the town of Shaddadeh in the Hassakeh province, on a road used by local Kurdish fighters and the US-led coalition fighting IS militants near the Iraqi border.

US military Colonel Sean Ryan said there were no casualties among the US-led coalition members. "We can confirm a combined US and Syrian partner force convoy was involved" in the suicide bomb attack, he said.

"We will continue to review the situation and provide updates as appropriate," he added.

Monday's bombing came days after a suicide attack killed 19 people, including two US service members and two US citizens, in the northern Syrian town of Manbij. That bombing, outside a popular restaurant frequented by US troops, was the deadliest assault on US troops in Syria since US forces moved into the country in 2015.

The extremist group claimed both attacks in statements carried by its Aamaq news agency. The IS group has been driven from virtually all the territory it once held in Syria and Iraq but continues to carry out attacks in both countries.

The Kurdish Hawar news agency, based in northern Syria, said Monday's blast targeted a Syrian Kurdish checkpoint as a coalition convoy was passing near Shaddadeh. It said two Kurdish fighters were lightly wounded in the blast.

A video it posted showed smoke rising from a vehicle on a desert road. Another video released by Observers showed smoke rising from what appeared to be an armored vehicle belonging to the Syrian Kurdish militia in flames. Coalition armored vehicles and ambulances could be seen on the road.

Observers said the blast killed five people and wounded others.

In a Dec 19 tweet announcing the withdrawal from Syria, US President Donald Trump declared: "We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency." He said the troops would begin coming home "now". That plan triggered immediate pushback from military leaders and led to the resignation of defense secretary James Mattis.

Over the past month, Trump and others have appeared to adjust the timeline, and US officials have suggested it will likely take several months to safely withdraw.

The office of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he and Trump spoke by phone early on Monday about Manbij, and that Erdogan told Trump that Turkey is "ready to take over the security" of the town "without losing time".

Associated Press

(China Daily 01/23/2019 page7)