The Manbij bombing occurred on 16 January 2019 when a suicide bomber targeted a busy market street in Manbij known to be frequented by American soldiers during the Syrian civil war.
The Palace of the Princes restaurant was popular with Americans, located on a crowded downtown street in Manbij.[3] U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham and Jeanne Shaheen ate there when they visited Syria in July 2018.[3]
The attack
Several American military personnel were inside the Palace of Princes restaurant when a suicide bomber triggered an explosion outside the restaurant around midday on Wednesday, 16 January 2019.[4] The bomber mixed into a crowd of people visiting a nearby vegetable market and detonated his explosive vest near the restaurant entrance, igniting a fireball that left the dead and wounded scattered in the street.[3] Rescue workers rushed the wounded to the hospital, and military helicopters landed on a nearby soccer field to take the dead and wounded Americans and civilians to medical facilities.[3]
Casualties
The U.S. Department of Defense released a statement on 18 January 2019, identifying their three employees: a soldier, a sailor, and an intelligence expert.[5] Defense contractor Valiant Integrated Services identified one of their employees as the fourth American killed.[6] The four deceased Americans were:
Civilian contractor Ghadir (Jasmine) Taher of East Point, Georgia. Taher worked for Valiant Integrated Services as an interpreter for U.S. troops in Syria.[10]
The total death toll is believed to be 19, including 15 local SDF fighters.[1] Three other American servicemen were also injured.[11] The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility.[12]
A second joint convoy of U.S. and allied Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria was hit in al-Hasakah 5 days later, there were no casualties, with two Kurdish fighters were lightly wounded in the blast.[14]
References
^ a b"4 members of the Coalition, 15 of the civilians and local members die in the first bombing of its kind by a suicide bomber targeting the Coalition since it entered Syria". Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
^ a bMoussa, Jenan; Doornbos, Harald (31 May 2018). "The End of the World Will Start Here in Manbij". The New York Times.
^ a b c d eHubbard, Ben; Schmitt, Eric (17 January 2019). "A Favorite Restaurant in Syria Led ISIS to Americans". The New York Times.
^Bacon, John (16 January 2019). "Suicide bomber kills four U.S. citizens in Syrian blast; ISIS claims responsibility". USAToday.
^"DOD Identifies Three Operation Inherent Resolve Casualties". U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE. 18 January 2019.
^Branigin, William; Mettler, Katie; Ryan, Missy (18 January 2019). "Americans slain in Syria attack: A Green Beret, a former SEAL and two language specialists". The Washington Post.
^Cohen, Howard (18 January 2019). "South Florida soldier is among the four Americans killed in Syria suicide bombing". Miami Herald.
^Santistevan, Ryan (18 January 2019). "Dutchess sailor killed in Syria caring, accomplished". Poughkeepsie Journal.
^Benchaabane, Nassim; Hunn, David (20 January 2019). "'The ultimate hero': Civilian from St. Louis among dead in Syrian suicide bombing". St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
^Redmon, Jeremy (18 January 2019). "East Point woman among 19 killed in suicide bombing in Syria". Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
^Cohen, Zachary; Stracqualursi, Veronica; Liptak, Kevin (17 January 2019). "US service members killed in ISIS-claimed attack in Syria". CNN.
^Bacon, John (16 January 2019). "Suicide bomber kills four U.S. citizens in Syrian blast; ISIS claims responsibility". USA Today.
^Stewart, Ian (19 January 2019). "Trump Travels To Dover AFB For Dignified Transfer Of 4 Americans Killed In Syria". NPR.
^"ISIL targets joint US-Kurdish convoy in northeastern Syria". Al Jazeera. 21 January 2019.