Reports: U.S. investigating if service member staged an insider attack in Syria
U.S. forces patrol near the countryside of Rmeilan in Syria. Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images
The U.S. military is investigating whether an American service member conducted an insider attack at a base in Syria that left four service members injured, CNN first reported Monday.
Driving the news: "A possible suspect, a US service member, has been identified," the Pentagon said in a statement to CNN on Monday. "At this point, these are just allegations, all suspects are presumed to be innocent until/unless convicted in a court of law."
Flashback: An attack at a small base in northern Syria in April left four service members with "possible traumatic brain injuries" and other minor wounds, per the Washington Post.
- U.S. officials originally said the attack was caused by indirect fire on the base. But the military later released a statement saying the attack was a “deliberate placement of explosive charges by an unidentified individual(s) at an ammunition holding area and shower facility.”
- Officials said the attack happened in the middle of the night, which suggests the perpetrator did not try to cause mass casualties, CNN reports.
- But the timing suggests the suspect may have tried to escape quietly or quickly, officials told CNN.
What's next: The Army's Criminal Investigation Division and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations are conducting the investigation into the attack, per CNN.
- "The investigation is ongoing, which may or may not, develop sufficient evidence to identify a perpetrator(s) and have enough evidence to ensure a conviction in a court of law," the Pentagon said in a statement to CNN. "No further information will be released at this time."
U.S. Central Command and the Department of Defense did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.