The Islamic State terrorist organization published a statement on Thursday celebrating the killing of three Americans, two servicemen and a civilian, in Syria last week, but stopped short of taking responsibility for the attack.
The message, translated and paraphrased by Reuters, appeared on a Telegram channel reportedly linked to the leadership of the global jihadist terror network. It is the first such message since the attack in Palmyra, which preceded another terrorist killing attributed to the group: the massacre at a Hanukkah event at Sydney, Australia’s Bondi Beach. Reuters did not indicate that the message mentioned the incident in Australia, which authorities blamed on a father-son duo carrying a homemade Islamic State flag.
The message in question, Reuters stated, celebrated the “blow” against the U.S. government in Syria.
“In an article published on its Telegram channel on Thursday, ISIS accused the United States and its Syrian-based allies of forming a single front against it,” Reuters relayed. “It used religious language to frame the assault as a decisive moment intended to dispel doubt among its supporters, but did not explicitly claim responsibility.”
The Islamic State, under late “caliph” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, once commanded a significant percentage of the territory of Iraq and Syria, dubbed the ISIS “caliphate.” It was headquartered in Raqqa, Syria, and for some time thrived as a result of the chaos in the country amid the Syrian Civil War between dictator Bashar Assad and rebel forces. The “caliphate” collapsed in 2017, toppled by the U.S.-backed, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). President Donald Trump ordered an operation to capture al-Baghdadi in Syria in 2019 that led to his demise.
“He died after running into a dead-end tunnel, whimpering and crying and screaming all the way,” President Trump announced at the time.
The Islamic State’s radical Sunni jihadist ideology has nonetheless continued to inspire Islamic terrorists around the world, even as the core institution has withered. Concerns about a resurgence of the group increased last week following the attack in Palmyra, Syria, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that the ISIS state almost entirely destroyed when it controlled it in 2017.
On Saturday, three Americans were killed by an armed assailant while working alongside Syrian military forces. The United States has engaged the nascent regime of President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda terrorist, following the collapse of the Assad regime in 2024. Sharaa notably is believed to have rejected cooperation with the Islamic State while leading his militia, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and focused on fighting the Assad regime and its Iranian and Russian allies. Sharaa joined the global coalition against the Islamic State in November after meeting with President Trump in the White House.
“The attack occurred as the soldiers were conducting a key leader engagement. Their mission was in support of ongoing counter-ISIS / counter-terrorism operations in the region,” Assistant Secretary of War for Public Affairs Sean Parnell revealed in a message this weekend. The two servicemen killed were later identified as Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, members of the Iowa National Guard.
“We mourn the loss of three Great American Patriots in Syria, two soldiers, and one Civilian Interpreter. Likewise, we pray for the three injured soldiers who, it has just been confirmed, are doing well,” Trump wrote on his website, Truth Social, following the attack. “This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., 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.”
The Syrian Interior Ministry later told reporters that the attacker was a member of the Syrian armed forces, but not one with any authority. Spokesperson Nour Eddin al-Baba insisted, “more than five thousand personnel are affiliated with the Internal Security Command in the Badia region, and weekly evaluations are conducted for all members with actions taken accordingly.” The Syrian government has also repeatedly emphasized that the location where the attack took place is not fully under Sharaa’s command, making a total guarantee of security from the government impossible.
The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) later reported that the attack had failed an “evaluation” for “extremist” views and was subject for review to remain in the military the Monday after the attack. Many reports indicated that the attacker was suspected of sympathizing with the Islamic State, though neither Washington nor Damascus has confirmed that claim.
The Syrian Interior Ministry has since announced that it arrested five people in relation to the attack, without offering details.
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