Airstrikes by the United States-led Coalition on Thursday targeted craters and destroyed roads that ISIS fighters had planned to use to evacuate the Border area between Syria and Lebanon. The Coalition spokesman, Col. Ryan Dillon which made this known in a statement issued on Thursday said though the strike did not hit the convoy, individual vehicles, and ISIS fighters were struck.
The fighters were moving toward eastern Syria after Lebanese army and Hezbollah declared victory over ISIS on Monday and announced that over 600 ISIS fighters and Civilian in the mountainous Syria-Lebanon Border were allowed to relocate to ISIS controlled eastern Syria. To facilitate this, Hezbollah declared a ceasefire in their battle against ISIS on Sunday to pave way for negotiations for the release of some soldiers held by the group.
Meanwhile, the US-led coalition said the strike was to prevent such move. According to Dillion, "Coalition conducted air strikes to stop a convoy of ISIS fighters and their families from reaching an ISIS-held area in eastern Syria from the Lebanese border under a truce deal.
The coalition has not struck the convoy. In accordance with the law of armed conflict, the coalition will take action against ISIS whenever and wherever we are able to without harming civilians"
Reacting to the strike, Pentagon Spokesman Eric Pahon told CNN that "The coalition is not a party to the agreement between Lebanese Hezbollah and ISIS.
He added that "ISIS is a global threat; relocating terrorists from one place to another for someone else to deal with is not a lasting solution. The coalition is monitoring the movement of these fighters in real-time.
In accordance with the law of armed conflict, the coalition will take action against ISIS whenever and wherever we are able to."
