US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that a “helicopter mishap” has resulted in 22 soldiers being injured in northeastern Syria. The statement added that 10 service members were evacuated to “higher care facilities.”
The June 11th mishap “resulted in injuries of various degrees to 22 US service members. The service members are receiving treatment for their injuries and 10 have been evacuated to higher care facilities outside of the CENTCOM AOR [area of responsibility],” the statement said.
It concluded that “the cause of the incident is under investigation” and “no enemy fire was reported.”
The US military has for long stationed its forces and equipment in northeastern Syria, with the Pentagon claiming that the deployment is aimed at preventing the oilfields in the area from falling into the hands of the Daesh (ISIL) Takfiri terrorists.
Damascus, however, has frequently reiterated that the deployment is an occupation of Syria and is meant to plunder the country’s natural resources. Former US president Donald Trump admitted on several occasions that American forces were in the Arab country for its oil wealth.
Source: Agencies
