Two US soldiers and a US civilian interpreter have been been killed in Syria in an ambush by a lone Islamic State gunman, the US military has said. The Pentagon said three other service members were injured in the attack, during which the gunman was "engaged and killed".

The incident is the first to be reported since Islamist-led forces overthrew Bashar al-Assad last year then rekindled ties with the US.

With Syria's new leadership emerging as a key U.S. partner, American troops in the country find themselves amid a complex pivot.

The Department of War told Fox News Digital it is aware of reports that American troops have come under fire Saturday in the central Syrian town of Palmyra.

An assailant opened fire at Syrian and U.S. forces on Saturday during a visit by American troops to a historic central town, leaving several wounded, Syria’s state media and a war monitor said. The shooting took place near Palmyra,