Army Spc. Jeffrey Pokryska, a CH-47 Chinook helicopter repairer assigned to Bravo Company, 3-10 General Support Aviation Battalion, keeps watch as the aircraft flies through Syria during a mission in support of Combined Joint Task Force — Operation Inherent Resolve near the Al Tanf garrison on Nov. 1, 2024. (Mahsima Alkamooneh/U.S. Army)

WASHINGTON — U.S. forces killed 12 Islamic State militants Monday in airstrikes on some of the terrorist group’s Syria-based camps, defense officials said.

The strikes were conducted on known ISIS camps, said Air Force Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the top Pentagon spokesman, but he did not reveal precisely where they are located. The strikes were in areas controlled by the former Syrian government and Russian forces, according to U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East.

Damage is still being assessed, but there are no indications of civilian casualties, CENTCOM said.

American forces in Syria are part of a U.S.-led coalition in that country and Iraq working to prevent a resurgence of the Islamic State. The recent strikes were conducted as part of that mission.

On Dec. 8, Air Force jets including B-52s and F-15 fighter jets struck 75 ISIS targets in central Syria on the day the regime of former President Bashar al-Assad collapsed. The strikes targeted ISIS leaders, operatives, and camps.

“CENTCOM, working with allies and partners in the region, will not allow ISIS to reconstitute and take advantage of the current situation in Syria,” said Army Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander.

The Syrian government is in transition after Assad was ousted in recent weeks. The collapse of his regime opens the door for a new government to lead Syria.

President Joe Biden’s administration insists the U.S. will not get involved in Syria’s war or the overthrow of the Assad government. But the U.S. and its allies have deep interests in Syria, including the efforts to defeat ISIS, disrupt Iran-backed groups and contain the remnants of al-Qaida and other terrorist groups that have found sanctuary.

About 900 U.S. service members and an undisclosed number of contractors are operating in Syria, where they support local Kurdish forces fighting ISIS. An additional 2,500 American troops are in Iraq.

U.S. bases in the region have been prone to attacks since the surprise attack in October 2023 by Hamas militants on Israel. The Pentagon last month said U.S. forces had been attacked 125 times in Syria and 79 times in Iraq since the Hamas attack.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.