FLASH
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A serious helicopter accident has left 22 American soldiers injured in Syria. It is learned that the accident happened during the weekend, but the cause is still unknown. According to the authorities, we are not dealing with a hostile attack.
The soldiers are undergoing medical treatment, with 10 of them being transferred to healthcare facilities outside the region that offer more advanced care.
There are an average of 900 US forces in Syria, along with an undisclosed number of contractors.
US special operations forces also move in and out of the country, but are usually in small teams and not included in the official count.
US forces have been in Syria since 2015 to advise and assist the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) militant group.
Since the extremist group was defeated in Syria in March 2019, US troops have been trying to prevent any return. However, the remaining factions of this group remain a threat.
There are also around 10,000 IS fighters held in detention facilities in Syria and tens of thousands of their family members living in two refugee camps in the northeast of the country.
Over the past few years, US troops have come under attack by IS members and Iran-backed fighters there.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his visit to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 7, 2023.
In late March, a drone strike on a US base killed a contractor and injured five US troops. In retaliation, US warplanes struck several locations around the eastern province of Deir el-Zour, which borders Iraq.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said at the time that the strikes were a response to the drone strike, as well as a series of recent attacks against US-led coalition forces in Syria by groups linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
In a related development, Kurdish-led Syrian authorities announced on Saturday that hundreds of IS fighters held in prisons across the region will stand trial after their countries of origin refused to repatriate them.
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