The US and its partner forces have carried out large-scale strikes against Islamic State (IS) group targets in Syria, the US Central Command (Centcom) has announced.
US President Donald Trump directed the strikes on Saturday, which are part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, in retaliation to the IS group's deadly attack on US forces in Syria on December 13, Centcom wrote on X.
The strikes were conducted in an effort to combat terrorism and protect US and partner forces in the region, according to Centcom.
Our message remains strong: if you harm our warfighters, we will find you and kill you anywhere in the world, no matter how hard you try to evade justice, Centcom said.
The US and its partner forces fired more than 90 precision munitions at more than 35 targets in an operation involving over 20 aircraft, an official informed CBS News, the BBC's US partner.
Aircraft involved in the operation included F-15Es, A-10s, AC-130Js, MQ-9s, and Jordanian F-16s.
The location of the strikes and the extent of any casualties is not yet clear.
We will never forget, and never relent, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth stated on X on Saturday regarding the military action.
The Trump administration first announced Operation Hawkeye Strike in December following an IS ambush that killed two US soldiers and a US civilian interpreter in Palmyra, Syria.
This is not the beginning of a war - it is a declaration of vengeance, Hegseth said during the announcement.
Prior to the latest strikes, US forces had already killed or captured nearly 25 IS members in 11 missions from December 20 to 29 as part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, according to Centcom.
In the operation's first mission on December 19, US and Jordanian forces carried out a prior strike against the IS group, deploying a combination of combat jets, helicopters, and artillery against multiple targets in central Syria.
