U.S. officials confirmed that an American F/A-18E Super Hornet shot down a Syrian Su-22 attack aircraft in defense of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) south of Tabqah this afternoon.
According to a press release by Combined Joint Task – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR), Syrian regime troops attacked SDF forces in the town of Ja’Din, wounding multiple US-backed fighters and forcing them to withdraw.
The Western Coalition contacted their Russian counterparts to deescalate the situation. However, two hours later, a Syrian Su-22 fighter bomber jet conducted an airstrike on SDF troops south of Tabqah. The Syrian jet was shot down almost immediately by an American F/A-18E Super Hornet.
CJTF-OIR said in the press release that “The Coalition does not seek to fight the Syrian regime, Russian, or pro-regime forces partnered with them, but will not hesitate to defend Coalition or partner forces from any threat… The demonstrated hostel intent and actions of pro-regime forces toward Coalition and partner forces in Syria conducting legitimate counter-ISIS operations will not be tolerated.”
