2019 Manbij bombing

In the Syrian Civil War, the city of Manbij was taken by the Free Syrian Army in 2012, and then by ISIS in 2014.{{cite news |last1=Moussa |first1=Jenan |last2=Doornbos |first2=Harald |date=31 May 2018 |title=The End of the World Will Start Here in Manbij |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/31/magazine/syria-conflict-manbij.html}} In 2016, the city was taken by the American-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in the Manbij offensive.{{cite news |last1=Hubbard |first1=Ben |last2=Schmitt |first2=Eric |date=17 January 2019 |title=A Favorite Restaurant in Syria Led ISIS to Americans |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/world/middleeast/syria-bombing-manbij-attack.html}}

The Palace of the Princes restaurant was popular with Americans, located on a crowded downtown street in Manbij. U.S. senators Lindsey Graham and Jeanne Shaheen ate there when they visited Syria in July 2018.

Several American military personnel were inside the Palace of Princes restaurant when a suicide bomber triggered an explosion outside the restaurant around midday on Wednesday, 16 January 2019.{{cite news|title=Suicide bomber kills four U.S. citizens in Syrian blast; ISIS claims responsibility|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2019/01/16/syria-explosion-us-soldiers-killed-explosion-manjib/2591639002/|publisher=USAToday|date=16 January 2019|first=John|last=Bacon}} The bomber mixed into a crowd of people visiting a nearby vegetable market and detonated his explosive vest near the restaurant entrance, igniting a fireball that left the dead and wounded scattered in the street. Rescue workers rushed the wounded to the hospital, and military helicopters landed on a nearby soccer field to take the dead and wounded Americans and civilians to medical facilities.

The U.S. Department of Defense released a statement on 18 January 2019, identifying their three employees: a soldier, a sailor, and an intelligence expert.{{cite web|url=https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/1735122/dod-identifies-three-operation-inherent-resolve-casualties/|title=DOD Identifies Three Operation Inherent Resolve Casualties|website=U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE|date=18 January 2019}} Defense contractor Valiant Integrated Services identified one of their employees as the fourth American killed.{{cite news |last1=Branigin |first1=William |last2=Mettler |first2=Katie |last3=Ryan |first3=Missy |date=18 January 2019 |title=Americans slain in Syria attack: A Green Beret, a former SEAL and two language specialists |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/pentagon-identifies-three-of-the-four-americans-killed-in-syria-suicide-bombing/2019/01/18/5c9f31b8-1b1e-11e9-88fe-f9f77a3bcb6c_story.html}} The four deceased Americans were:

• Army Chief Warrant Officer 2 Jonathan R. Farmer, 37, of Boynton Beach, Florida. Farmer was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Kentucky.{{cite news |last1=Cohen |first1=Howard |title=South Florida soldier is among the four Americans killed in Syria suicide bombing |url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article224744340.html |work=Miami Herald |date=18 January 2019}}
• Navy Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Shannon M. Kent, 35, of upstate New York. Kent was assigned to Cryptologic Warfare Activity 66, based at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.{{cite news |last1=Santistevan |first1=Ryan |title=Dutchess sailor killed in Syria caring, accomplished |url=https://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/story/news/local/2019/01/18/dutchess-navy-sailor-killed-syria-remembered-pine-plains-community/2613691002/ |work=Poughkeepsie Journal |date=18 January 2019}} Her husband was Joe Kent, an army officer who would later run for a U.S. House seat.
• DOD civilian intelligence officer Scott A. Wirtz of St. Louis, Missouri. Wirtz was assigned to the Defense Intelligence Agency as an operations support specialist.{{cite news |last1=Benchaabane |first1=Nassim |last2=Hunn |first2=David |date=20 January 2019 |title='The ultimate hero': Civilian from St. Louis among dead in Syrian suicide bombing |work=St. Louis Post-Dispatch |url=https://www.stltoday.com/news/world/the-ultimate-hero-civilian-from-st-louis-among-dead-in/article_3dc5d556-1db8-581b-b74c-30f671184e49.html}}
• Civilian contractor Ghadir (Jasmine) Taher of East Point, Georgia. Taher worked for Valiant Integrated Services as an interpreter for U.S. troops in Syria.{{cite news |last1=Redmon |first1=Jeremy |title=East Point woman among 19 killed in suicide bombing in Syria |url=https://www.ajc.com/news/breaking-news/east-point-woman-among-killed-suicide-bombing-syria/auRc0Q17iiIeFYDfpU3kdK/ |work=Atlanta Journal-Constitution |date=18 January 2019}}

The total death toll is believed to be 19, including 15 local SDF fighters. Three other American servicemen were also injured.{{Cite web |author=Cohen |first1=Zachary |last2=Stracqualursi |first2=Veronica |last3=Liptak |first3=Kevin |date=17 January 2019 |title=US service members killed in ISIS-claimed attack in Syria |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/16/politics/syria-attack-us-patrolled-city/index.html |website=CNN}} The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility.{{cite news|title=Suicide bomber kills four U.S. citizens in Syrian blast; ISIS claims responsibility|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2019/01/16/syria-explosion-us-soldiers-killed-explosion-manjib/2591639002/|publisher=USA Today|date=16 January 2019|first=John|last=Bacon}}

File:President Trump Attends Dignified Transfer of Remains Ceremony (46103336184).jpg, Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attend the Dignified Transfer of Remains Ceremony, 19 January 2019]]

U.S. President Donald Trump paid tribute to the fallen Americans during a trip to Dover Air Force Base in the US state of Delaware on 19 January, where their remains were received.{{cite news |last1=Stewart |first1=Ian |title=Trump Travels To Dover AFB For Dignified Transfer Of 4 Americans Killed In Syria |url=https://www.npr.org/2019/01/19/686864704/trump-travels-to-dover-afb-for-dignified-transfer-of-4-americans-killed-in-syria |work=NPR |date=19 January 2019}}

A second joint convoy of U.S. and allied Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria was hit in al-Hasakah 5 days later. There were no serious casualties, but two Kurdish fighters were lightly wounded in the blast.{{cite news|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/01/isil-targets-joint-kurdish-convoy-northeastern-syria-190121155934249.html|title=ISIL targets joint US-Kurdish convoy in northeastern Syria |work=Al Jazeera |date=21 January 2019}}

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{{Syrian Civil War}}

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Category:2019 murders in Syria

Category:Aleppo Governorate in the Syrian civil war

Category:Marketplace attacks in Syria

Category:Attacks on restaurants in Syria

Category:2019 building bombings

Category:Crime in Aleppo Governorate

Category:ISIL terrorist incidents in Syria

Category:Islamic terrorist incidents in 2019

Category:January 2019 crimes in Asia

Category:January 2019 in Syria

Category:Mass murder in 2019

Category:21st-century mass murder in Syria

Category:Suicide bombings in 2019

Category:Suicide bombings in Syria

Category:Terrorist incidents in Syria in 2019

Category:Building bombings in Syria

Category:Restaurant bombings in Asia