Overview
- U.S. Central Command said forces on Dec. 19 struck over 70 Islamic State sites in central Syria using fighter jets and attack helicopters that fired more than 100 precision-guided munitions.
- The strikes follow a Dec. 13 attack near Palmyra that President Trump said killed two U.S. soldiers and a civilian interpreter and wounded three other service members.
- Defense Secretary Hegses announced the campaign as Hawkeye Strike, describing targets that included IS fighters, infrastructure and weapons depots.
- Hegses emphasized the action as a declaration of retaliation rather than the start of a wider war, while Trump hailed the operation as a success.
- The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported at least five IS fighters killed, and Trump said Syria’s provisional government fully supports the operation.