Donald Trump ordered large-scale military strikes across Syria on Friday night, coinciding with the release of 300,000 pages of Jeffrey Epstein files by the US Justice Department. The operation, named Hawkeye Strike, began at 9pm UK time and targeted ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites.
The strikes were prompted by the killing of two US soldiers and an interpreter last weekend by a lone gunman from the jihadist group in Palmyra. US Central Command reported that fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery struck more than 70 targets at multiple locations across central Syria.
US F-15 and A-10 jets, Apache helicopters, and HIMARS rocket systems were used, with aircraft from Jordan also participating in what was described as intense bombardment. Pete Hegseth stated in a social media post: 'This is not the beginning of a war – it is a declaration of vengeance. The United States of America, under president Trump’s leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people.'
Rami Abdel Rahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported at least five ISIS members killed in Deir Ezzor province, including a drone cell leader. A Syrian security source confirmed that the strikes targeted ISIS cells in the Badia desert across Homs, Deir Ezzor, and Raqa provinces, with no ground operations involved.
Trump posted on Truth Social that the US is 'inflicting very serious retaliation, just as I promised, on the murderous terrorists responsible', warning that those who attack Americans 'WILL BE HIT HARDER THAN YOU HAVE EVER BEEN HIT BEFORE'. He noted Syrian government support for the strikes. Approximately 1,000 US troops remain in Syria, including 250 from Iowa.
