Pentagon sends jets, warning as Syria bombs near US-backed Kurds

Two Syrian Su-24 jets struck Kurdish positions in and near Hasakah, in northeastern Syria, on Thursday, Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters. The strike came close to US Special Forces operators, who were embedded with the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), comprised of the Kurdish YPG and local Arab militias.
 The Special Forces were ordered to retreat from the area as a precaution. No Americans were wounded in the bombing, according to Davis.

When the strikes began, the “coalition forces on the ground” tried reaching the Syrian jets on a common radio frequency, but received no response, Davis added. US forces then reached out to the Russian military, using a previously established channel, and the Russians confirmed their aircraft were not involved.

The Special Forces were ordered to retreat from the area as a precaution. By the time the US jets arrived, the Syrian bombers had already departed. No Americans were wounded in the bombing, according to Davis.
The Americans made it clear that the US would “take whatever action is necessary” to defend the special operators on the ground, Davis said.

The US has increased air patrols in the area, Davis said.

Local media report that the fighting in Hasakah broke out earlier this week between the pro-government National Defense Forces (NDF) militia and the Kurdish forces, with the Syrian Army role limited to 10 airstrikes against the Kurds.

While the Russian aerospace forces have been invited by the government in Damascus, the presence of US forces in Syria is not authorized under international law.

 The US-backed SDF was set up in October 2015, as a proxy force against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL). The militia recently succeeded in ousting IS from Manbij, a strategic city in northern Syria near the Turkish border.