DAMASCUS (Dispatches) – A U.S. military convoy has been forced to retreat from an area in Syria’s northeastern province of Hasakah after army troops blocked it, amid public anger at the deployment of foreign forces in the oil-rich region.
Syrian army troops, deployed at a security checkpoint near the village of al-Damkhiya southwest of Qamishli city, blocked the road and prevented the passage of U.S. armored vehicles travelling along the strategic M4 highway.
The American troops were subsequently forced to turn around and go back in the direction they came from. There were no reports of clashes or injuries.
The development came a few days after local residents of a village in the same Syrian province prevented a U.S. military convoy from passing through the community.
Lebanon’s al-Mayadeen television news network reported that a U.S. convoy of four armored vehicles was forced to turn around and head back in the direction it came from after villagers in Hamu blocked the road and prevented it from passing.
The U.S. military has stationed forces and equipment in eastern and northeastern Syria, with the Pentagon claiming that the deployment is aimed at preventing the oilfields in the area from falling into the hands of Daesh terrorists.
Damascus, however, says the unlawful deployment is meant to plunder the country’s resources.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump admitted on several occasions that American forces were in Syria for its oil.
The development comes days after the al-Tanf base came under a coordinated attack, involving unknown drones and rockets, but American officials said there were no injuries or deaths.
The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed the Wednesday incident in a statement, describing it as “a deliberate and coordinated attack.”
The military base lies close to an intersection between Syria’s, Jordan’s and Iraq’s borders.
It is the only U.S. military base not located in the areas held by Kurdish militants in the Arab country, which has been used to attack anti-terror fighters in Syria and Iraq in the past.
A prominent U.S. analyst says damage from the attack on the controversial U.S. military base on the Syria-Iraq border is significant, but Washington is keeping it under wraps in order to avoid an escalation.
In a post on his twitter account, Charles Lister, a senior fellow and director of the Countering Terrorism and Extremism Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, released images of the aftermath of drone and rocket strikes at al-Tanf garrison in Syria’s Homs province.
“Judging from leaked images, the drone & rocket attack on al-Tanf in SE #Syria (home to U.S. troops) on Weds night was quite significant,” he said.
“DOD confirmed the attack, but has provided no other info -- clearly being hushed up, to avoid hype/escalation,” he added, referring to the U.S. Department of Defense.