It’s payback time.
Two Iowa National Guard soldiers – Sgt Nate Howard and Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar – alongside an Iraqi-American translator – Ayad Mansour Kyriakos Sakkat – were murdered by an infiltrating ISIS member who ambushed their group during a meeting in a Syrian village last Saturday.
A number of American troops wounded in the same attack were airlifted out of the area.
At the time, President Trump promised ISIS was going to pay for this.
…The gunman was killed by partner forces.
“This was an ISIS attack against the U.S., and Syria, in a very dangerous part of Syria, that is not fully controlled by them,” Trump wrote in Truth Social at the time.
“The President of Syria, Ahmed al-Sharaa, is extremely angry and disturbed by this attack,” he added. “There will be very serious retaliation. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
…and CENTCOM has confirmed the strikes have begun. My understanding is that the areas they are hitting are all under Al-Shaara’s control, so this helps him out as well.
U.S. Forces Unleash Massive Strike Against ISIS in Syria
TAMPA, Fla. – U.S. forces have commenced a large-scale strike against ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites in Syria. This massive strike follows the attack on U.S. and partner forces in Syria on Dec. 13.
We will provide…
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) December 19, 2025
…We will provide additional information soon.
May the good Lord watch over and protect all our forces and those of coalition partners involved in this action.
And may He keep their aim true and lethal
And there are partners in the strike action, including Jordan. Wiping out ISIS remnants whenever they have a chance can only be beneficial to the kingdom.
…Hundreds of American troops continue to be deployed to Syria as part of the US’ longstanding mission to combat ISIS, a mission that began when ISIS rapidly took control of a large chunk of Syria and Iraq in the mid 2010s. Subsequently, US and partner operations, paired with a change in regime in Syria, largely eliminated that territorial control.
The goal of Operation Hawkeye is to deliver a big blow to ISIS remnants in Syria and their ability to pose a threat to US forces in the region, the same official told CNN.
Partner nations, including Jordan, joined the US in the strikes, the official said.
There is video already available on X of what amounts to lights in the sky, and conjecture about what exactly they are. Everyone’s an armament expert in the dark.
Alongside aircraft’s carrying out airstrikes, the US military used ground missiles launched from the Shaddadi base to target the ISIS caves in the Syrian desert.
There used to be discussions on whether or not the US has deployed such missile systems to its bases in Syria. https://t.co/5Cua423w9k pic.twitter.com/hw4Il4ojJJ
— ScharoMaroof (@ScharoMaroof) December 19, 2025
But military sources did tell the New York Times that helos, jets, and other platforms were involved, so they are multifaceted attacks. The description of the size of the action as ‘massive’ echoes the CENTCOM release.
…American fighter jets, attack helicopters and artillery salvos struck dozens of suspected Islamic State sites at several locations across central Syria, including weapons storage areas and other buildings to support operations, according to a U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters.
The American air and artillery attacks were expected to last several hours, deep into early Saturday morning in Syria, in what the U.S. official said would be “a massive attack.”
I hope they blow the dog crap out of all of them.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has also confirmed the ongoing action, clarifying that it’s not the start of a wider operation or a war.
It’s Americans just taking care of business.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth confirmed Friday that the United States has launched airstrikes against ISIS fighters in Syria, which he said was in response to American soldiers who were killed in the country last week.
The attacks were on ISIS fighters, infrastructure, and weapons sites in Syria.
“This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance,” Hegseth said on X. “The United States of America, under President Trump’s leadership, will never hesitate and never relent to defend our people. As we said directly following the savage attack, if you target Americans — anywhere in the world — you will spend the rest of your brief, anxious life knowing the United States will hunt you, find you, and ruthlessly kill you.”
The White House called it a promise kept.
…After the operation began, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement, “President Trump told the world that the United States would retaliate for the killing of our heroes by ISIS in Syria, and he is delivering on that promise.”
So it was.
Please, sir – may we have some more?
Semper Fi
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