US-Jordan Airstrikes Hammer 90+ Bombs on ISIS in Syria's 'Operation Hawkeye Strike' After Deadly Ambush Kills 2 Soldiers, Interpreter
CENTCOM announced the attacks were part of “Operation Hawkeye,” which was executed and announced on Dec. 19, 2025 by American President Donald Trump “in direct response to the deadly ISIS attack on US and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria, on December 13, 2025.”
Aadrika Tayal 
New Delhi (India) January 11: Large-scale US strikes against Islamic State (ISIS) targets in Syria were initiated Saturday following last month’s ambush that killed two US soldiers and one American civilian interpreter in the country.
Operation Hawkeye Strike
US Central Command reports that the airstrikes, carried out by the US alongside partner forces at approximately 12:30 pm (local time), hit several ISIS objectives across the country. The bombings were a component of ‘Operation Hawkeye Strike’.
"Today, at approximately 12:30 pm Eastern Time, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, alongside partner forces, conducted large-scale strikes against multiple ISIS targets across Syria," US Central Command said on social media platform X.
Massive Saturday Strikes: F-15s, A-10s, Drones Hit Dozens of Targets
The strikes were aimed at ISIS across Syria as part of our ongoing battle against Islamic terrorism aimed at our warfighters and to prevent future attacks and maintain the security of our American and partner forces in the region.
Different aircraft, such as F-15E fighter jets, A-10 attack planes, AC-130J gunships, MQ-9 drones, and Jordanian F-16s, were engaged in the attacks. US officials have not acknowledged the location of the strikes, or the number of casualties.
US warplanes and drones dropped over 90 bombs on about three dozen targets, including ISIS infrastructure, smuggling routes, and weapons storage sites, said US Central Command’s spokesman, Captain Tim Hawkins. The strikes were also carried out by Jordanian forces.
Vengeance Launch from Dec 19
Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the operation was indicative that Washington would not forget or relent, stressing the strikes were not the beginning of a war but “a declaration of vengeance.”
Operation Hawkeye Strike was launched on 19 December with a massive assault across central Syria where some 70 ISIS targets that included IS infrastructure and weapons were targeted. Before that, the US and Jordan had also previously carried out strikes pursuant to the same operation.
Syria said a day prior to Saturday’s action that they had captured the ISIS commander responsible for the group’s operations across the Levant.
Syria's Capture, US Resolve: No Mercy for ISIS Terrorism
The strikes are part of a wider campaign under President Donald Trump’s orders on the heels of the deadly ISIS assault that last month killed Sgt Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, Sgt William Nathaniel Howard, and Ayad Mansoor Sakat, the civilian interpreter, in Palmyra. Torres-Tovar and Howard, both members of the Iowa National Guard.
“These strikes are part of Operation Hawkeye Strike, which was launched and announced on Dec. 19, 2025, at the direction of President Trump, in direct response to the deadly ISIS attack on U.S. and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria, on Dec. 13, 2025. That ambush, carried out by an ISIS terrorist, resulted in the tragic deaths of two American soldiers and one US civilian interpreter," CENTCOM said.
