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Three of the four Americans killed in the suicide explosion near a coalition patrol led by the US-led coalition in Syria were identified on Friday.
Chief Warrant Officer 2, Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, Boynton Beach, Florida, Marine Shannon M. Kent, Chief Technician, Cryptology (Interpretation), 35 years old, from upstate New York, and Scott A. Wirtz, a member of the United Kingdom's Department of Defense, have all been identified.
The Adjutant- Army Chief 2, Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, of Boynton Beach, was killed in Syria on Wednesday, January 16, 2019.
Farmer has participated in six overseas touring tours and has received numerous awards and decorations, including the Bronze Star Medal and Purple Heart. He is survived by his wife, four children and parents.
OFFICIALS WERE KILLED OF SUICIDE BLAST IN SYRIA
Information on other victims was not available immediately.
This was an interpreter working for the Department of Defense and his name was not published. ISIS claimed responsibility for the explosion, claiming that one of its members had carried out the suicide bombing and detonated his vest with explosives. The attack was the most lethal assault on US troops in Syria since the entry of US forces into the country in 2015.
Video of Wednesday's attack aired by local activists and news agencies showing a heavily damaged restaurant and a street covered with debris and blood. Several cars were also damaged. Another video showed a helicopter flying over the area. A security camera showed a bustling street and then a fireball engulfed people and others who ran to shelter when the explosion took place.
TRUMP TOUTS "SYNAA LOW OVERDUE" SYRIA PULLOUT KURDS
Manbij is the main city located in the far west of Syrian territory, owned by Syrian Kurds backed by the United States and along the Turkish border. Syrian and Kurdish mixed forces released Manbij from the Islamic State in 2016 with the help of the US-led coalition.
The attack provoked new complaints about the withdrawal of US troops from Syria. Last month, President Trump announced that ISIL had been defeated and that it was firing about 2,000 US troops in Syria
Shortly after Wednesday's attack, the vice-president President Mike Pence reiterated the accusations of the defeat of the Islamic State group. Speaking to the state department, Pence said the "caliphate had collapsed" and that the militant network "had been defeated". Later in the day, he issued a statement condemning the attack but affirming the withdrawal plan.
Lucas Tomlinson of Fox News, Katherine Lam, and the Associated Press contributed to the writing of this report.
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