US Helicopters Involved In Attack On Syrian Troops, Confirms Local News Agency

The U.S. was involved in the attack on Syrian troops on Monday, Aug. 17, the local news agency reported. The attack left one Syrian troop dead and two others wounded.

The Russian and Turkish soldiers are also said to have been targeted in a separate incident in Syria, the country where civil war has been going on for almost the last decade.

The official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said that firing was done on Syrian soldiers from a U.S. chopper after an attempt to “block a U.S. ground patrol at a security checkpoint southeast of the northeastern Al-Qamishli city, Al-Hasakah province.”

Later, the outlet also published a photo of what appeared to be a man bandaged on his foot, shoulder and hand.

"At exactly nine o'clock this morning, an American patrol tried to enter the area where one of our combat formations were deployed in the countryside of the city of Al-Qamishli through the 'Tal al-Dhahab' checkpoint," a military source confirmed to SANA.

The news concerning the U.S. helicopter targeting Syrian troops after an altercation at a checkpoint in Tal al-Dhahab has also been confirmed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

In a separate incident elsewhere in Syria, Russian and Turkish troops were hit on Monday on patrol. At the time of the attack, they were touring the M4 Highway region together in the northwestern province of Idlib. According to Turkey's state broadcaster Anadolu Agency, the roadside bombing only damaged one of its vehicles and no casualties were reported on either of the sides. None of the group has claimed the responsibility for the attack.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke over the phone on Monday regarding the matter. It is being said that both the officials discussed ways to tackle “counter-terrorism.”

"President Erdogan and President Putin agreed on the continuation of the talks between Turkey and Russia via military and diplomatic channels regarding the situation in Syria," mentioned a statement provided by the Turkish presidency following the call.