US troops wounded in Syria rocket attacks

Three U.S. troops were injured in two separate rocket attacks on bases housing American service members in Syria, the Pentagon announced Wednesday.   

One service member was treated for a minor injury and was returned to duty, while two others are under evaluation for “minor injuries” following rocket attacks at Conoco and Green Village in northeastern Syria, according to a statement from U.S. Central Command. 

U.S. forces quickly responded to the attacks, which began at 7:20 p.m. local time, destroying three vehicles and equipment used to launch some of the rockets with attack helicopters, Centcom said. 

“Initial assessments indicate that two or three suspected Iran-backed militants conducting one of the attacks were killed during the U.S. response,” the statement notes.  

Centcom head Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla said forces are “closely monitoring the situation” and “have every confidence in our ability to protect our troops and Coalition partners from attacks.” 

The individual returned to duty had been injured at Conoco, but the statement did not say where the other two service members had been located. The release also did not say whether either location had damage to structures or equipment. 

No militant group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks, but a day earlier, U.S. forces launched airstrikes on infrastructure in Syria that Washington claimed was used by Iran-backed groups. 

The strikes targeted “infrastructure facilities” in the city of Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria that were used by groups affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to Centcom’s top spokesman, Col. Joe Buccino.