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The Defense Department on Friday identified three of the four Americans killed on Wednesday in a suicide bombing in Syria claimed by the Islamic State.
In a statement, the Pentagon designated the three Americans as Chief Warrant Officer of the Army 2. Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, of Boynton Beach, Florida; Shannon M. Kent, chief marine cryptology technician (interpretation), 35, from northern New York State; and Scott A. Wirtz, a civilian of the St. Louis Department of Defense.
The fourth American, a civilian contractor, was not identified immediately.
[Suicide blast kills four Americans in Syria, a sign of remaining extremist danger]
The four men were killed and three other Americans were injured when a walking suicide attack was committed. detonated an explosive vest in front of a restaurant in the city of Manbij, northern Syria, while they met local military officials.
This is the largest loss of life in the Pentagon war against Islamic State militants in Syria. The Trump government is starting to pull American forces out of the country with a powerful threat.
Syrians visit the site of a suicide attack targeting US forces in Manbij, northern Syria, on January 17, 2019. (Delil Suleiman / AFP / Getty Images)
The Pentagon said the Americans supported Operation Inherent Resolve, the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
[ Murder of 4 Americans in Syria Spotlight on Trump's policy]
He stated that Farmer had been assigned to the 3rd Battalion of the 5th Special Forces Group (airborne) at Fort Campbell, in Kentucky. Kent had been assigned to Cryptological Warfare 66 based in Fort Meade, Maryland and Wirtz. was an operations support specialist at the Defense Intelligence Agency.
Kent enlisted in the Navy in 2003 and served in missions in Fort Gordon, Georgia, Norfolk, Virginia and Washington, in addition to Fort Meade, the Navy announced.
"She was a rockstar, an excellent first master and a leader in the navy's information warfare community," said the Cmdr. Joseph Harrison, head of his unit at Fort Meade, said in a statement.
Farmer, married with four children, joined the military in March 2005, officials said. He has participated in four combat missions abroad: Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2007 and 2009, Operation New Dawn in 2010, Operation Enduring Freedom in 2012 and Operation Inherent Resolve – his last mission – in 2018 and 2019. [19659013HewastrainedatFortBenningGeorgiaandattendedthespecialforcesqualificationcourseFarmergraduatedasaSpecialForcesEngineerSergeantin2007andwaspostedtothe5thSpecialForcesGroupwherehespenttherestofhiscareer
During his years of service, Farmer received numerous awards and decorations, including a bronze star medal. with two clusters of oak leaves.
Wirtz served for 10 years as Navy SEAL before joining the Defense Intelligence Agency in February 2017, said a spokeswoman for the DIA. The DIA said it has made three deployments for the agency in the Middle East.
The Pentagon said that the suicide bombing committed in Manbij "is the subject of an investigation".
[Deadly Syria attack deepens anxiety about Trump’s drawdown plan]
President Trump's surprise on Dec. 19, announcing the defeat of the Islamic State and US troops returning to the country has attracted much criticism, including from the United States. Republican allies who warned that a premature departure from the United States could allow the return of militants.
After announcing his intention to withdraw 2,000 US troops from Syria, Trump also ordered the Pentagon to fire. almost half of the more than 14,000 troops deployed in Afghanistan. This decision overrode warnings from senior advisers and military officials that such a withdrawal would further plunge Afghanistan into chaos.
In a separate announcement Friday, the Special Operations Command of the Army told a guard-soldier, Sgt. Cameron A. Meddock, 26, of Spearman, Texas, died Thursday from injuries sustained during combat operations on Jan. 12 in the Afghan province of Badghis.
Meddock served in Company A, 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington, was in his second deployment with the US-led coalition. This announcement indicates that he died in Landstuhl, Germany, "as a result of injuries caused by small arms fire". He did not provide any details about the clash that led to his death.
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