The US Department of State on Saturday unveiled footage of sweeping strikes hitting multiple ISIS-linked sites across Syria as part of the retaliatory “Operation Hawkeye Strike.” A US Central Command video showed fighter jets launching into action, followed by clips of precision hits on various targets.
The US Army stated these operations directly countered a fatal ISIS ambush on US and Syrian forces in Palmyra on December 13, 2025. “Today, at approximately 12:30 p.m. Eastern Time, US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, alongside partner forces, conducted large-scale strikes against multiple ISIS targets across Syria,” the command announced.
“These strikes are part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, which was launched and announced on December 19, 2025, at the direction of President Trump, in direct response to the deadly ISIS attack on US and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria, on December 13, 2025. That ambush, carried out by an ISIS terrorist, resulted in the tragic deaths of two American soldiers and one US civilian interpreter.”
The strikes aimed to dismantle ISIS networks throughout Syria, upholding the commitment to eliminate threats to US warfighters, avert future assaults, and safeguard American and allied troops in the region. “US and coalition forces remain resolute in pursuing terrorists who seek to harm the United States. Our message remains strong: if you harm our warfighters, we will find you and kill you anywhere in the world, no matter how hard you try to evade justice,” the statement emphasized.
This December ambush was the first deadly strike on US personnel in Syria since Bashar al-Assad’s ouster in December 2024. The fallen soldiers, Torres-Tovar, 25, from Des Moines, Iowa, and Howard, 29, from Marshalltown—both Iowa National Guard members—died alongside a US civilian interpreter; three other Guard members suffered injuries.
Operation Hawkeye Strike kicked off on December 19 with strikes on about 70 ISIS targets in central Syria. The US and Jordan conducted an earlier wave last month. Just a day before Saturday’s action, Syrian authorities arrested the ISIS military leader for Levant operations.
Hundreds of US troops stay deployed in Syria under the long-running anti-ISIS mission, which ramped up in the mid-2010s when the group seized vast territories in Syria and Iraq.
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