U.S. forces enter Syrian town, then withdraw - rebel source and monitor
Source: Reuters
A small number of U.S. forces entered the Syrian town of al-Rai near the Turkish border on Friday as part of operations to coordinate air strikes against Islamic State, a senior rebel source said.
However, the five or six U.S. military personnel were then forced to withdraw towards the Turkish border after Syrian rebels protested against their presence in the town, the source said.
A monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, also reported the incident and said the U.S. forces had left al-Rai but were still on Syrian soil.
One U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said initial reports appeared to confirm the incident involving a small group of U.S. forces.
Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mideast-crisis-syria-usa-idUKKCN11M1IA?il=0
Video footage appears to show US commandos fleeing a Syrian town under a barrage of abuse and insults hurled at them by fighters from the American-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebel group.
The video appears to be the first evidence of US special forces cooperating with Turkish troops in their battle against Islamic State (Isil).
The incident illustrates the complex web of alliances and enmities in Syria, where many of America’s allies are fighting each other and some rebel groups that receive US support still harbour strong anti-American sentiments.
The footage shows a crowd of rebel fighters in the town of al-Rai near the Turkish border, which was captured from Isil by Syrian rebel groups with the backing of Turkey. Turkey, which launched a military incursion into Syria in late August, has been backing the FSA.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/09/16/american-commandos-forced-to-run-away-from-us-backed-syrian-rebe/
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