Clashes between American forces and paramilitary groups loyal to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad broke out today in Qamishli, in northeastern Syria, reports an NGO and a correspondent of France Presse.
That brief land skirmish occurred when an American military convoy mistakenly passed through the village of Kirbet Amu, reports the Syrian non-governmental Observatory for Human Rights, reports France Presse.
The clashes in which one person was killed on the Syrian side were stopped after the overflight of American planes in that sector, which enabled the evacuation of two American military vehicles kept in the village.
The AP agency states that one Syrian civilian was killed and one wounded when American soldiers opened fire on local groups that tried to stop the passage of an American convoy through a checkpoint in a village in the northeast of the country.
The Syrian news agency Sana reported that locals gathered in the village of Kirbet Amu, east of Qamishli, and threw stones at the American convoy and removed the American flag from one vehicle.
At that moment, American soldiers fired live ammunition and smoke bombs at the residents, Sana said.
So far, there are no reports from the US-led international coalition about this event.
This incident represents a rare clash between US and Syrian forces in an area where Russian troops are also deployed, and which is sure to raise tensions, according to the AP.
Sanaa reported that the incident occurred when Syrian forces stopped a US convoy of four vehicles and hundreds of people gathered at the checkpoint to prevent them from going any further.
The agency said locals attacked the convoy and damaged four vehicles after US soldiers opened fire, killing one civilian and wounding another.
The Syrian Observatory reported that it was not clear whether a civilian or a member of a paramilitary group had been killed.
American planes flew over the area during the confrontation. After a tense confrontation, the convoy was able to leave the area.
The Observatory also reported that a Russian convoy had arrived in the area to calm tensions.
Hundreds of US troops are stationed in northeastern Syria, working alongside their Kurdish partners in the Syrian Democratic Forces in the fight against Islamic State.
The Americans are conducting patrols in northeastern Syria, but for now it is not known why the convoy entered the area under the control of Syrian government forces, according to AP.
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