The United States launched extensive air and artillery strikes against ISIS positions in Syria on Friday, as part of “Operation Hawkeye Strike,” carried out under Trump’s direction, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced.
Hegseth said the operation targeted ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites in response to an attack on US forces in Palmyra on December 13, which killed two US soldiers.
In a post on X, Hegseth said the operation was not a declaration of war, but one of "vengeance", adding "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. Today, we hunted and we killed our enemies. Lots of them. And we will continue."
US CENTCOM announced Operation Hawkeye Strike launched at 4 pm ET against ISIS in Syria, Dec. 19, at the Commander in Chief’s direction.
In a statement, it revealed that its forces struck more than 70 targets at multiple locations across central Syria with fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery, adding that the Jordanian Armed Forces also supported with fighter aircraft.
The operation employed more than 100 precision munitions targeting known ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites.
“This operation is critical to preventing ISIS from inspiring terrorist plots and attacks against the U.S. homeland,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM.
“We will continue to relentlessly pursue terrorists who seek to harm Americans and our partners across the region.”
After the Dec. 13 attack on US and Syrian personnel, US and partner forces conducted 10 operations in Syria and Iraq, resulting in the deaths or detention of 23 terrorist operatives, the statement continued.
US and partner forces in Syria have conducted more than 80 operations over the last six months to eliminate "terrorists posing a direct threat to the United States and regional security," it concluded.
According to an anonymous US official, cited by The New York Times, American fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery struck dozens of suspected ISIS positions across central Syria, including weapons storage facilities and buildings.
The official said the "large-scale attack" is expected to last several hours, continuing into early Saturday local time. Later, US Central Command announced a large-scale military operation against ISIS infrastructure and weapons depots in Syria.
At the same time, Syria's state TV reported that the International Coalition is targeting ISIS positions in the Maadan Desert in the Raqqa countryside, the Hammad Desert in the Deir Ezzor countryside, and Mount al-Amour.
Meanwhile, Syrians reported hearing explosions across vast areas of the country.
Last week, the US military announced that a lone ISIS gunman opened fire on US personnel during an ambush, killing two service members and a US civilian, and injuring three additional troops. The attacker was later killed.
Three local Syrian officials and the Interior Ministry later confirmed to Reuters that the attacker was a member of Syrian security forces. The ministry noted he did not hold any leadership role within the force, but did not clarify whether he was a junior member.
Soon after, US President Donald Trump vowed that Washington will take “very serious” retaliatory measures, warning on Truth Social, “This was an ISIS attack against the US and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria that is not fully controlled by them. The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack. There will be very serious retaliation.”
US military aircraft carried out an immediate show of force over Palmyra, with A-10 attack jets flying at low altitude, dropping flares, and conducting aggressive passes. The maneuvers were intended to terrorize and create pressure in the area following the attack.
Just today, ISIS issued a statement, stating that the attack on an international coalition convoy "struck the heart of its enemies," without explicitly claiming responsibility for the attack.
In its statement regarding the recent attack targeting American troops and Syrian factions in the city of Palmyra, the organization claimed that “the bullets struck the heart of US forces and the armed Syrian factions against us.” This marks the group’s first public comment on the incident.