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ATMEH, Syria — U.S. special forces carried out what the Pentagon said was a successful, large-scale counterterrorism raid in northwestern Syria early Thursday. First responders at the scene reported 13 people had been killed, including six children and four women.
The operation, which residents say lasted about two hours, jolted the sleepy village of Atmeh near the Turkish border — an area dotted with camps for internally displaced people from Syria’s civil war. The target of the raid was not immediately clear.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said in a brief statement that the mission was a success. “There were no U.S. casualties. More information will be provided as it becomes available.”
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Several residents told The Associated Press they saw body parts scattered near the site of the raid, a house in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib province. They spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, and said the raid involved helicopters, explosions and machine-gun fire.
It was the largest raid in the province since the 2019 U.S. assault targeting the Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Idlib is an Al-Qaida stronghold and home to several of its top operatives. But other militants have also found refuge in the region, which is broadly controlled by Turkey-backed fighters.
There were diverging reports on how many people were killed. The Associated Press saw body parts around the house, and blood inside the building.
The opposition-run Syrian Civil Defense, first responders also known as the White Helmets, said 13 people were killed in shelling and clashes that ensued after U.S. the commando raid. They included six children and four women, it said.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition war monitor, said the strike killed nine people, including two children and a woman. Ahmad Rahhal, a citizen journalist who visited the site, reported seeing 12 bodies.
The Pentagon provided no details on who was…
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Source : time
