A U.S. service member died in Syria on Tuesday, according to military officials in the region.
The individual, whose service branch hasn’t been released yet, was assigned to the Operation Inherent Resolve coalition.
“Initial reports indicate the incident was not due to enemy contact,” reads a brief Inherent Resolve press release sent Tuesday afternoon. “The incident is under investigation.”
The individual’s identity will be released after their next of kin have been notified, Inherent Resolve officials stated.
There have been four hostile deaths and five non-combat deaths under the Inherent Resolve mission this year. All of the combat deaths have been in Iraq.
An airman and a soldier were killed in mid-March during a rocket attack on Camp Taji. Prior to that, two Marine Raiders were killed in Iraq’s southern Makhmur Mountains while clearing a tunnel complex full of Islamic State fighters.
Nearly 150 U.S. service members have been wounded in action this year, as well. One Marine, 10 airmen and 138 soldiers have been wounded in combat in 2020, according to Pentagon data.
Most of the wounded in action this year appear to be from the Iranian ballistic missile attack that struck two Iraqi bases housing coalition troops on Jan. 8.
In 2019, there were three hostile deaths, nine non-combat deaths and only 12 troops wounded in action.
Kyle Rempfer was an editor and reporter who has covered combat operations, criminal cases, foreign military assistance and training accidents. Before entering journalism, Kyle served in U.S. Air Force Special Tactics and deployed in 2014 to Paktika Province, Afghanistan, and Baghdad, Iraq.
