US F-16 fighter jet shoots down Turkish drone in Syria

Middle East, News, US October 7, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

A U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter jet shot down a Turkish military drone operating in Syria on October 4, 2023, initiating a rare clash between two NATO allies. The incident came after Turkey intensified its operations in northern Syria in response to a suicide bombing in Ankara.

According to the Pentagon, the Turkish drone was operating in the northeastern part of Syria and was shot down after being deemed a threat to the U.S. forces operating in the same region. Pentagon spokesman Brigadier General Pat Ryder said that the United States troops observed drones carrying out raids, some of them inside a “restricted operating zone” (ROZ) near Hasakah.

He said that the drone was operating less than a kilometer away from the U.S. troops posing danger to the forces in the region. The drone was shot down after it flew towards the U.S. forces. Ryder said that the U.S. forces made dozens of calls to the Turkish military without a response.

“The U.S. commanders assessed the UAV, which was now less than a half kilometer from U.S. forces, to be a potential threat,” he said. “U.S. F-16 fighters subsequently shot down the UAV in self-defense,” he added.

The U.S. has about 900 troops deployed in Syria as part of international efforts to combat the ISIL (ISIS) armed group and carries out frequent raids targeting the fighters.

*^{U.S. deploys F-16 aircraft to the Central Command’s area of responsibility in the Middle East. (Image Credit: U.S. Air Force/Osakabe Yasuo)}*

Pentagon officials also said that U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Turkish counterpart Yasar Guler following the incident and urged him for a “de-escalation in northern Syria and the importance of maintaining strict adherence to de-confliction protocols and communication through established military-to-military channels.”

The Turkish defense ministry confirmed the communication between the two defense chiefs but did not elaborate on the incident in detail. According to a statement released by the Turkish defense ministry, two defense chiefs discussed “the latest developments in Syria”.

Intense operations

Turkish forces have intensified their military operations in Syria following a suicide bomb attack that occurred in Ankara earlier this week. Following the bombing, the Turkish military conducted a series of air strikes in northern Syria and destroyed 15 targets where it said PKK-affiliate fighters were believed to be hiding. Turkey’s defense ministry did not say where in northern Syria the strikes had hit.

“As has been done in Iraq, all the capabilities and revenue sources developed by the terrorist organization in Syria will continue to be destroyed in a systematic way,” Turkey’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

100 killed in a drone attack in Syria

In a separate drone attack carried out on a military college on October 4 in Syria’s Homs province, at least 100 people were killed while 240 were reported injured. The attack was carried out during a graduation ceremony at the college. None of the operating forces in the region have laid claim the attack so far.

Turkish strike on Syria — *^{Smoke rises from a car after an alleged Turkish strike on Hasakah, Syria, on October 5, 2023. (Image Credit: North Press Agency/via Reuters)}*

Syrian military sources reported that a drone laden with explosives targeted the ceremony as it was coming to an end. In a statement, the military accused fighters “backed by known international forces” for the attack.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “expressed deep concern” at the drone attack in Homs as well as “reports of retaliatory shelling” in northwest Syria that resulted in numerous deaths.