The shooting took place near historic Palmyra, according to the state-run SANA news agency. The casualties were taken by helicopter to the al-Tanf garrison near the border with Iraq and Jordan.
Syria’s Interior Ministry spokesman, Nour al-Din al-Baba, said a gunman linked to IS opened fire at the gate of a military post. He added that Syrian authorities were looking into whether the gunman was an IS member or only carried its extreme ideology. He denied reports that suggested that the attacker was a security member.
Later, al-Baba said the attacker was a member of the Internal Security force in the desert, adding that he “did not have any command post” within the forces nor was he a bodyguard for the force commander.
Al-Baba added in an interview with state TV that some 5000 members had joined Internal Security forces in the desert and were evaluated on a weekly basis. He added that three days ago, an evaluation was made for the attacker that concluded he might have extreme ideology and a decision was expected to be issued regarding his case on Sunday, but “the attack occurred on a Saturday, which is a day off for state institutions”.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth posted on X: “Let it be known, if you target Americans – anywhere in the world – you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you.”
US officials made no reference in their statements to the gunman being a member of the Syrian security forces. When asked about the matter, a Pentagon official did not directly respond to the question but said, “this attack took place in an area where the Syrian president does not have control”.
The Pentagon said the attack targeted soldiers involved in the ongoing counter-terrorism operations in the region.Credit: AP
The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military issues.
The US has hundreds of troops deployed in eastern Syria as part of a coalition fighting IS.
The US had no diplomatic relations with Syria under Assad, but ties have warmed since the fall of the five-decade Assad family rule. Al-Sharaa, made a historic visit to Washington last month where he held talks with Trump. It was the first White House visit by a Syrian head of state since the Middle Eastern country gained independence from France in 1946 and came after the US lifted sanctions imposed on Syria during the Assads’ rule.
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Al-Sharaa led the rebel forces that toppled Bashar Assad in December 2024 and was named the country’s interim leader in January. Al-Sharaa once had ties to al-Qaida and had a $US10 million ($15 million) US bounty on his head.
Last month, Syria joined the international coalition fighting against the IS as Damascus improves its relations with Western countries following the ouster of Assad when insurgents captured his seat of power in Damascus.
IS was defeated on the battlefield in Syria in 2019 but the group’s sleeper cells still carry out deadly attacks in the country. The United Nations says the group still has between 5000 and 7000 fighters in Syria and Iraq.
