The U.S. military says four American service members were among 16 people killed during an explosion while conducting a routine patrol in Syria.
Reports also state that more than a dozen people were injured.
The military said in a tweet about the Jan. 16 blast in the northern Syrian town of Manbij: “We are still gathering information and will share additional details at a later time.”
A Syrian war monitor, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported earlier that at least two U.S. soldiers were killed in the suicide attack outside a restaurant in Manbij.
The Kurdish Hawar news agency, based in northern Syria, said three Americans were killed.
The blast killed a total of 16 people including nine civilians according to the Observatory.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders earlier said in a statement: “The President has been fully briefed and we will continue to monitor the ongoing situation in Syria. For any specific questions please contact the Department of Defense.”
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the blast, saying one of its members carried out a suicide attack and detonated his vest with explosives. The Observatory and the Kurdish-led Manbij Military Council, which runs the town, also said a suicide bomber was involved but did not immediately have any further details.
The attack comes just days after President Trump tweeted the “long overdue pullout” of U.S. soldiers from Syria has begun. He announced in December he would be pulling out about 2,000 American troops in Syria.
“Starting the long overdue pullout from Syria while hitting the little remaining ISIS territorial caliphate hard, and from many directions. Will attack [ISIS] again from existing nearby base if it reforms,” the president tweeted on Jan. 13.
Manbij northeast of Aleppo and sits near the Syrian/Turkish border.