US Denies Involvement After Syria Drone Strike Kills Eight Hezbollah

The US was quick to deny responsibility today when a drone strike was reported in eastern Syria’s Deir Ezzor Province, an attack which hit a group of Hezbollah fighters, killing at least eight of them.

The US said the location of the incident was outside of their own area of operations. Though the US is hostile toward Hezbollah, it would be unusual to attack them so far east, particularly in an area where Hezbollah is fighting against ISIS.

But it’s not clear who else even might’ve done it. The only other nation that’s been targeting Hezbollah in Syria is Israel. While that’s a possibility, it would be very provocative for Israel to attack Hezbollah forces while they’re fighting ISIS.

It’s a provocation no matter who did it. The US and Russia have been having a hard time with their respective anti-ISIS offensives in the area, with both accusing the other of targeting their allies in recent weeks. Those past strikes have all been more limited, however, and killing eight anti-ISIS fighters would be a serious embarrassment for all concerned.