The military statement said the servicemen were being treated and 10 had been transferred to "higher care facilities" outside the area.
US troops in Syria. Photo: CTV News
“A helicopter crash in northeastern Syria left 22 U.S. service members with various injuries,” the statement said. “There were no reports of enemy fire.”
Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said at a press briefing that the incident involved an MH-47 Chinook helicopter. “The Chinook experienced a rotor blade failure that caused the aircraft to make an emergency landing shortly after takeoff,” she said, adding that all crew members on board were in stable condition.
There are at least 900 US troops in Syria, along with an undisclosed number of contractors. US forces have been in Syria since 2015 to advise and assist the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces in their fight against the extremist Islamic State group.
Since the extremist group was defeated in Syria in March 2019, the US military has been trying to prevent any return of IS in the region.
There are still around 10,000 IS fighters held in detention facilities in Syria and tens of thousands of their family members living in two refugee camps in the northeast of the country.
Over the years, the US military has come under attack by members of the Islamic State group and Iran-backed militants.
In late March, a drone attack on a US base killed one contractor and wounded five US soldiers and another contractor.
In retaliation, US warplanes struck several sites around the eastern province of Deir el-Zour, which borders Iraq.
Hoang Nam (according to AP)
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