WASHINGTON/EDGARTOWN, Mass., (Reuters) – U.S. forces attempted to rescue journalist James Foley and other American hostages during a secret mission into Syria and exchanged gunfire with Islamic State militants only to discover the captives were not there, officials said yesterday.
The mission, authorized by President Barack Obama based on U.S. intelligence, took place earlier this summer. Officials disclosed the mission a day after a video surfaced showing a militant beheading the 40-year-old Foley.
Officials would not say exactly when the operation took place but said it was not in the past couple of weeks. U.S. special forces and other military personnel, backed up by helicopters and planes, dropped into the target zone in Syria and engaged in a firefight with Islamic State militants.
The incident, in which a number of militants were killed, appeared to be the first direct ground engagement between the United States and Islamic State militants, seen by Obama as a growing threat in the Middle East.
Lisa Monaco, Obama’s top counterterrorism aide, said in a statement that Obama authorized the mission because it was his national security team’s assessment that the hostages were in danger with each passing day.
