AMMAN: The US Special Operations forces successfully carried out a counter-terrorism mission in northwest Syria on Thursday, the Pentagon said, adding there were no US casualties but gave no further details.
Residents of the northwest Syrian town of Atmeh and rebels fighting the Syrian government earlier reported several civilian casualties in the two-hour operation, saying the raid was believed to have targeted a suspected al Qaeda-affiliated militant.
“US Special Operations forces under the control of US Central Command conducted a counter-terrorism mission this evening in northwest Syria. The mission was successful,” Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby said in a statement.
“There were no US casualties. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
Residents of Atmeh said the raid took place around midnight in a densely populated area near the border with Turkey, where tens of thousands of displaced Syrians live in makeshift camps or overcrowded housing.
There were no reports of any militants being killed, but residents said they heard heavy gunfire during the operation, indicating resistance to the raid.
One resident said several people were killed in the raid, while another said rescuers pulled out at least 12 bodies from the rubble of a multi-storey building, including children and women.
Charles Lister, a senior fellow with the Washington-based Middle East Institute, said he had spoken to residents who said the operation lasted more than two hours.
“Clearly they wanted whoever it was alive,” Lister said.
“This looks like the biggest of this type of operation” since the Baghdadi raid, he said.
