Turkey’s Leaks of US Military Posts in Syria Puts Lives at Risk, Pentagon Says

Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) sit atop an armoured personnel carrier on the outskirts of the town of al-Shadadi in the northeastern Syrian province of Hasakeh, on Feb. 19, 2016. (DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Sensitive U.S. military data was leaked on Wednesday by Turkish state-run media which drew a swift response from the Pentagon.

Turkey’s government leaked 10 secret U.S. military locations in Northern Syria—military posts were part of an operation to eliminate the ISIS terrorist group in Raqqa.

Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency, leaked the locations on July 19 after having said the military points are “usually hidden for security reasons,” The Hill reports.

The agency’s report lists two U.S. airfields and eight U.S. military outposts, revealing their specific districts and even listing the number of soldiers stationed at one post.

Pentagon spokesman Maj. Adrian Rankine-Galloway told The Hill that the leak threatens the lives of U.S. military personnel deployed at those locations.

“The release of sensitive military information exposes Coalition forces to unnecessary risk and has the potential to disrupt ongoing operations to defeat ISIS,” Rankine-Galloway said.

The spokesman went on to say that the defense department never revealed the locations of military locations in Syria “for operational security reasons.”

Rankine-Galloway added they have not verified fully if the Turkish government was behind the leak.

“While we cannot independently verify the sources that contributed to this story, we would be very concerned if officials from a NATO ally would purposefully endanger our forces by releasing sensitive information,” Rankine-Galloway told The Hill.

The U.S. military locations that were revealed are in an area controlled by Syrian Kurdish forces known as the Kurdish Democratic Party and the People’s Protection Units, The Hill reports.

Kurdish fighters are pictured during clashes with fighters from the Islamic State group on the outskirts of Syrian city of Hasakeh on June 30, 2015. (UYGAR ONDER SIMSEK/AFP/Getty Images)

The United States supports the groups through military means in their fight against ISIS. However, Turkey considers the Kurdish forces terrorists.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan strongly condemned President Trump’s decision in May to aid Syria by arming Syrian Kurds to fight ISIS.

“We want to believe that our allies would prefer [to] be side by side with ourselves rather than with the terror groups,” Erdoğan said.

From NTD Television