A manned U.S. aircraft shot down a pro-Syrian regime drone early Thursday morning after it attacked coalition forces conducting a joint patrol with partner forces near the Tanf garrison in southern Syria, according to Col. Ryan Dillon, the spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve.
The attack by the pro-regime drone, which occurred east of Tanf, outside of the 55-kilometer deconfliction zone, resulted in zero coalition casualties and had zero effect on operations, Dillon said. The munition dropped by the “MQ-1-like” drone “hit dirt,” he added.
However, its actions represented an unacceptable threat to coalition forces.
“It was clearly meant as an attack,” Dillon said. The bomb missed its intended target, but “proximity made it clear who they were trying to hit.”