This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force shows a U.S. Airman preparing an A-10 Thunderbolt II for flight from a base in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Friday, Dec. 19, 2025, in support of Operation Hawkeye Strike.
AP/US Air Force via DVIDS
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AP/US Air Force via DVIDS
WASHINGTON — The United States has launched a new round of retaliatory strikes against the Islamic State in Syria following last month’s ambush that killed two American soldiers and an American civilian interpreter in the country.
The large-scale strikes, carried out by the United States alongside partner forces, took place around 12:30 p.m. ET, according to US Central Command. The strikes hit several Islamic State targets in Syria.
Saturday’s strikes are part of a broader operation that is part of President Donald Trump’s response to the deadly ISIS attack that killed Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Ayad Mansoor Sakat, the civilian interpreter, in Palmyra last month.
“Our message remains strong: If you harm our fighters, we will find and kill you anywhere in the world, no matter how hard you try to escape justice,” US Central Command said in a statement on Saturday.
The day before, Syrian officials announced that their security forces had arrested the military leader of IS operations in the Levant.
The U.S. military said Saturday’s strikes were carried out alongside partner forces, without specifying which forces participated.
The Trump administration called the response to the Palmyra attacks Operation Hawkeye Strike. Torres-Tovar and Howard were both members of the Iowa National Guard.
It launched another large-scale strike on December 19 that hit 70 targets in central Syria with IS infrastructure and weapons.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have for years been the United States’ main partner in the fight against ISIS in Syria, but since the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December 2024, Washington has stepped up coordination with the central government in Damascus.
Syria recently joined the global coalition against ISIS.
