Syria bomb kills 2 troops from US, UK

Associated Press

KOBANI, SYRIA

A roadside bomb in northern Syria killed two coalition personnel, an American and a Briton, and wounded five others in a rare attack since the U.S.-led coalition sent troops into the war-torn country, the U.S. and British militaries and a U.S. defense official said Friday.

The military did not say where the attack took place or give the nationalities of the other casualties but it came hours after a local Syrian official said that a roadside bomb exploded in the tense, mixed Arab-Kurdish town of Manbij that is not far from the border with Turkey.

Manbij is under threat of a Turkish military operation. Ankara says Syrian Kurdish militiamen it views as “terrorists” and an extension of Kurdish insurgents inside Turkey are in control of the town.

The U.S. military statement said the attack happened Thursday night and that the wounded were being evacuated for further medical treatment. The statement said details were being withheld pending further investigation.

A Department of Defense official in Washington said one of the two killed was an American service member and the other was of another nationality.

No other information about the deceased American was immediately available. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because details had not yet been publicly released.

A U.K. defense ministry spokesman said the British armed forces member was killed during an operation against the Islamic State group. The spokesman added that an improvised explosive device killed the service member who was embedded with U.S. forces Thursday.