The official added that US forces are consolidating outside federal Iraqi territory, meaning they are concentrating forces elsewhere to focus on attacking remnants of ISIS in Syria.
ARMED KURDISH FIGHTERS TRY TO CROSS IRAN’S BORDER AS REGIONAL THREAT GROWS AGAINST PROTESTS: REPORTS
An American pilot attaches a GBU-31 ammunition system to an F-15E Strike Eagle. (US Air Force via Reuters)
This move comes at a time when CENTCOM calls for cooperation and teamwork among Syrian partners in coordination with U.S. forces to combat ISIS.
“We welcome the continued efforts of all parties in Syria to prevent escalation and pursue a solution through dialogue. We also urge Syrian government forces to cease all offensive actions in the areas between Aleppo and al-Tabqa. Aggressively pursuing ISIS and relentlessly applying military pressure requires teamwork among Syrian partners and coordination with US and coalition forces. A Syria at peace with itself and its neighbors is essential for peace and stability across the region,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, said in a statement. posted on X.
The statement appeared to be a call for additional coordination in the fight against ISIS rather than a warning to Damascus.
On January 10, CENTCOM announced that the US, along with partner forces, was conducting large-scale attacks on ISIS targets in Syria.
According to CENTCOM, the attacks were part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, which was announced on December 19, 2025 at the direction of President Donald Trump. The operation was launched “in direct response to the deadly ISIS attack on U.S. and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
DEADLY ATTACK ON US TROOPS TEST TRUMP’S COUNTER-ISIS PLAN – AND HIS TRUST IN SYRIA’S NEW LEADER
Military forces carried out strikes on ISIS targets in Syria on January 10, amid President Donald Trump’s vow to take revenge on the terror group for the deaths of two US soldiers in an ambush. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The January 10 attacks came as US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack said he had met in Damascus with Syria’s new leadership to discuss the country’s future.
“Today, on behalf of President Donald J. Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, I met with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Secretary of State Asaad al-Shaibani and members of their team in Damascus,” Barak wrote on X.
Barrack said the talks focused on “recent developments in Aleppo and the broader path forward for Syria’s historic transition,” adding that the United States “welcomes Syria’s historic transition and extends its support to the Syrian government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa.”
US ANNOUNCES MORE MILITARY ACTIONS AGAINST ISIS: ‘WE WILL NOT GIVE UP’
An American soldier writes about a munitions system as the U.S. military launched large-scale strikes against dozens of ISIS targets in Syria in retaliation for an attack on U.S. personnel. (US Air Force via Reuters)
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced the launch of Operation Hawkeye Strike in December, saying it was in response to an attack on US forces in Syria that took place on December 13. Hegseth said the actions were “not the start of a war” but rather “a declaration of revenge.”
“Earlier today, U.S. forces initiated OPERATION HAWKEYE STRIKE in Syria to eliminate ISIS fighters, infrastructure and weapons sites in direct response to the attack on U.S. forces that occurred on December 13 in Palmyra, Syria,” Hegseth said. wrote on X.
On December 19, US forces used more than 100 precision munitions to strike more than 70 targets of suspected ISIS sites in several locations in the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria.
Trump previously vowed revenge on the terrorist group after the soldiers – Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa – and interpreter Ayad Mansoor Sakat of Michigan – were killed in a key leadership role, part of their mission to support ongoing anti-ISIS/counter-terrorism operations in the region.
The shooter was killed by partner forces.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“In light of ISIS’s brutal murder of brave American patriots in Syria, whose beautiful souls I welcomed to American soil earlier this week in a very dignified ceremony, I hereby announce that the United States is taking very serious retaliation, just as I promised, against the murderous terrorists responsible,” he wrote. Truth Social on December 19.
