Two US soldiers and interpreter shot dead in ISIS ambush in Syria

Two American soldiers and an American civilian interpreter were killed in an attack by ISIS in Syria on Saturday.

The Pentagon and a senior Syrian official said the soldiers were supporting counterterrorism operations when they came under fire in Palmyra, a city in the country’s central desert region once held by the extremist group.

Three others were wounded, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said, in an attack that indicates continued high levels of instability in Syria.

The attack took place during a visit by US troops to an office used by the country’s internal security forces, a senior official in the area told The National.

According to the official, the attacker was a member of Syria's internal security forces and was, “associated with ISIS.” He shot at the US troops, who were then flown to Al Tanf base, where an American contingent is based. Three local officials also told Reuters that the attacker was a member of the local security forces.

President Donald Trump said that there would be "very serious retaliation". In a post on Truth Social, he said that "this was an ISIS attack against the US, and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them".

US President Donald Trump has said there will be 'serious retaliation' over the killing of two US Army soldiers and an interpreter in Syria. Bloomberg

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the attacker, who was responsible for the first American combat deaths