Armed men in uniform (right) identified by Syrian Democratic forces as U.S. special operations forces walk in the village of Fatisah in the northern Syrian province of Raqqa on May 25, 2016. (DELIL SOULEIMANDELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images)A U.S. service member was killed by an improvised explosive device in northern Syria on Thursday, the Pentagon announced in a statement. The service member was killed near Ayn Issa, a town roughly 35 miles northwest of the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed capital of Raqqa. The death marks the first time a U.S. service member has been killed in the country since a contingent of Special Operations forces were deployed there in October 2015 to go after the extremist group. “The entire counter-[Islamic State] coalition sends its condolences to this hero’s, family, friends and teammates,” said Lt. Gen Stephen Townsend, the commander of the U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Source: Washington Post November 24, 2016 22:26 UTC