WASHINGTON, Oct 12, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - US forces have conducted air strikes
against multiple Islamic State group sites in Syria, the military said
Saturday, as ally Israel battles other militants in Gaza and Lebanon.

US forces "conducted a series of airstrikes against multiple known ISIS camps
in Syria in the early morning of Oct. 11," the US Central Command said in a
statement on X, using an acronym for the Islamist militant group.

"The strikes will disrupt the ability of ISIS to plan, organize, and conduct
attacks against the United States, its allies and partners, and civilians
throughout the region and beyond."

The US military has around 900 troops in Syria as part of the international
coalition against the Islamic State (IS) group.

The coalition was established in 2014 to help combat the armed group, which
had taken over vast swaths of Iraq and Syria.

Anti-IS coalition forces have been targeted dozens of times with drones and
rocket fire in both Iraq and Syria, as violence related to the Israel-Hamas
war in Gaza since last year has drawn in militants across the Middle East,
including Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.

US forces have carried out multiple retaliatory strikes against militant
factions in both Iraq and Syria.

In September, US forces conducted two separate strikes in Syria, killing 37
"terrorist operatives" including members of IS and Al-Qaeda affiliate Hurras
al-Din.

US Central Command said Saturday that its damage assessments were underway
and "do not indicate civilian casualties."