US bombs Syrian government army convoy

Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday,

The U.S. sent aircraft to strike Syrian regime vehicles on Thursday that violated a deconfliction zone set up around al-Tanf, an army base where special forces are training Syrian militias, CBS News national security correspondent David Martin reports.

The Syrian regime has violated the zone two times in the past few days, CBS’s Martin reports.

In one incident, 27 regime vehicles drove within 18 miles of al-Tanf, which breached the 34 mile radius of the army convoy. U.S. aircraft attempted to buzz the regime, but when the convoy didn’t turn around, they conducted a strike against some of the vehicles, CBS adds.

In the second incident, an unarmed Syrian SU-22 fighter-bomber entered the deconfliction zone and was intercepted by a pair of F-22 fighter aircraft, CBS indicated.

It remains unclear as to why the Syrians violated the zone. Martin reports that Syrian forces are pushing eastward towards the Euphrates River Valley, which hints to the idea that the regime may have been doing reconnaissance on their flank, according to the CBS.

CBS added that the base was attacked by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in April. Last summer, Syrian fighters trained by the U.S. who operated out of al-Tanf were bombed by Russian jets.

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