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On July 4th, reports surfaced claiming that the US base located in Syria’s al-Omar Oilfield in the Arab country’s eastern province of Dayr Ezzor was targeted by at least two rockets, and there were “massive explosions.”
Yemen’s al-Masirah television network cited Syrian sources as describing the blasts as “successive” explosions.
The Syrian Observatory for Human rights, a UK-based so-called monitor, also told Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV that the oilfield had been hit by a number of rockets.
Siyamend Ali, a spokesman for the U.S.-backed and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, said two rockets were fired at al-Omar field in Syria’s eastern province of Deir Ezzor without inflicting any casualties. He added that it was not immediately clear where the rockets were fired from.
Other reports, however, said the blasts were caused as a result of “training” activity taking place among foreign forces there.
Hours later, the US officially denied the reports, saying they were false.
“There is no truth to the reports that U.S. forces in Syria were attacked by rockets today,” tweeted coalition spokesman Col. Wayne Marotto.
Then, later on July 4th, the Syrian Democratic Forces denied reports that another base housing U.S. troops was hit, saying the sounds of explosions at the facility, known as Conoco, were from training with live ammunition.
The alleged rocket attack on al-Omar came six days after U.S. troops in eastern Syria came under a similar attack. Last week’s attack came a day after U.S. Air Force planes carried out airstrikes near the Iraq-Syria border against what the Pentagon said were facilities used by Iran-backed militia groups to support drone strikes inside Iraq.
Still, in nearby Iraq, a US convoy was subject to an IED attack the Baghdad governorate. Attacks such as these are incredibly common and happen all the time.
More severe attacks are also expected, in response to the US strikes along the Syria-Iraq border that left at least 7 Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) dead.
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