The U.S. military said it may have unintentionally struck Syrian troops while carrying out a raid against ISIS on Saturday, threatening an already fragile U.S. and Russian-brokered cease-fire that has largely held despite dozens of alleged violations on both sides.
It marks the first known direct American strike on Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces. The United Nations Security Council scheduled a closed emergency meeting for Saturday night at Russia’s request to discuss the airstrike.
U.S. Central Command said the strike was immediately halted “when coalition officials were informed by Russian officials that it was possible the personnel and vehicles targeted were part of the Syrian military.”
The Syrian military said the deadly airstrike hit a base in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour that is surrounded by ISIS, allowing the extremists to advance and overrun Syrian army positions in the area. Russia’s military said it was told by the Syrian army that at least 62 soldiers were killed in the air raid and more than 100 wounded.
The cease-fire, which does not apply to attacks on ISIS, has already been the subject of disputes between Moscow and Washington, with each accusing the other of failing to fully implement it.
“Coalition forces would not intentionally strike a known Syrian military unit,” the U.S. military statement said.
The Syrian military said the airstrikes enabled an ISIS advance on a hill overlooking the air base. It called the strike a “serious and blatant attack on Syria and its military,” and “firm proof of the U.S. support of Daesh,” using the Arabic acronym for ISIS.
A Syrian military spokesman told a briefing early today that the U.S. airstrike destroyed three tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles, four mortars and an anti-aircraft gun, Russia’s TASS news agency reported. The unnamed spokesman said the ISIS advance on the base was stopped after Russian warplanes were called in to hit ISIS positions.
Russia called for an emergency session of the U.N. Security Council and demanded “full and detailed explanations about whether this was deliberate support of the Islamic State or another mistake.”
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted by the state news agency TASS as saying that “after today’s attack on the Syrian army, we come to the terrible conclusion that the White House is defending the Islamic State.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said it sent an urgent message asking the Security Council to “condemn the U.S. aggression,” TASS reported, citing a statement released by Syria’s SANA news. The statement claimed five U.S. aircrafts took part in the airstrike.
A senior Obama administration official said the United States has “relayed our regret” for the unintentional loss of life of Syrian forces fighting the ISIS.
The official says the notification was sent through Russia. The official also said the U.S. will continue to pursue compliance with the cessation of hostilities as it continues military action against ISIS and an al-Qaida-affiliated group. The official was not authorized to discuss the notification by name and requested anonymity.
A Russian Defense Ministry official said Syria has informed them that 62 of its soldiers were killed in the airstrike. Russia has been waging a year-old air campaign on behalf of Assad’s forces and closely coordinates with them.
Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said the airstrike near Deir el-Zour airport, held by the government, was conducted by two F-16s and two A-10s. He did not identify the planes’ country affiliation, but said they were part of the international coalition. Konashenkov said the planes came from the direction of the Iraqi border.
He added that if the coalition attack was launched by mistake, the reason for it was a “stubborn reluctance by the American side to coordinate its action against terrorist groups in Syria with Russia.”
ISIS has repeatedly attacked the government-held air base, which is an isolated enclave deep in extremist-held territory.