Four US military forces deployed to Syria have sustained injuries in a militant attack, according to a new report.
The incident took place in northern Syria on June 9, when militants who were believed to be part of the Daesh (ISIL) Takfiri group attacked US forces with an anti-tank rocket, the CNN reported Tuesday citing US military officials.
The report noted that the injuries were mostly shrapnel wounds and the troops are believed to have returned to their duty.
The Pentagon is not likely to publicly address the report as these incidents usually involve US Special Forces and the military does not discuss their whereabouts or mission for security reasons, the CNN noted.
It added that American troops have either been wounded or killed on at least five occasions in Iraq and Syria and Washington discusses the matter when a service member is killed.
The health status of the wounded troops is also another piece of information that American officials refuse to disclose due to “privacy concerns,” the report added.
Reports by the Pentagon show that so far three American forces have been killed in Iraq and Syria, while 16 others have been wounded since President Barack Obama authorized the first deployment of US military forces back to Iraq in June 2014.
Pentagon statistics also show that 15 US troops have been killed in non-combat situations as part of the so-called US-led coalition’s military effort against the terror group.
Washington has deployed dozens of US forces to Iraq and Syria in what it claims is an effort to shore up local militant groups against Daesh.
US officials have so far maintained that the forces on the ground are prohibited under the rules of engagement to conduct offensive military operations.
There are also dozens of US special operations forces in Syria, who are working closely with a collection of various armed groups that are trying to topple the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The US has also been supplying the militants with ammunition.