US Forces Successfully Shoot Down Turkish Drone Approaching American Troops in Syria

The U.S. military took down an armed drone belonging to Turkey, a NATO ally, after it entered dangerously close to American troops in Syria, according to the Pentagon’s spokesperson.

Press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder described the incident as “regrettable” and stated that the drone came within half a mile of U.S. troops while carrying out bombings in northeastern Syria.

Around 11:40 a.m. local time, F-16 aircraft shot down the drone when it posed a potential threat, causing American forces to seek safety in bunkers. Fortunately, no U.S. personnel were harmed in the incident.

Ryder revealed that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had a productive phone call with his Turkish counterpart to reaffirm their commitment to close coordination. Similarly, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. CQ Brown expressed the need to follow deconfliction protocols and ensure the safety of personnel in Syria.

This event marked the first time the U.S. had to bring down an aircraft of its NATO ally.

The presence of U.S. troops in the region aims to prevent the resurgence of the Islamic State following its defeat in March 2019, with the assistance of Kurdish-led forces. However, Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization perceives the Kurds as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a terrorist group, and carries out strikes against them in Syria.

Ryder mentioned that Turkish drones had previously conducted airstrikes in Hasakah, Syria, including within a known U.S. restricted operating zone, just 1 km away from American troops. Later on, a Turkish drone reentered the zone and approached the area where U.S. forces were located. U.S. commanders deemed the drone a potential threat, leading to its downing by F-16s. Ryder emphasized that there is no indication of intentional targeting of U.S. forces by Turkey.

Ryder did not provide details on the communication between U.S. forces and the Turks prior to the incident, other than stating that multiple channels of communication exist at varying levels. According to earlier reports, the shootdown occurred after numerous calls to Turkish military officials, warning them about the presence of American forces and the intention to protect them if the drone did not retreat.

This incident comes at a delicate time for U.S.-Turkish relations, as the United States seeks to persuade Turkey to support Sweden’s NATO membership bid.

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