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DoD Identifies Fallen U.S. Service Member in Syria

WASHINGTON, Nov. 26, 2016 — The Defense Department has identified the American service member who was killed in Syria on Thanksgiving Day.

Navy Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott C. Dayton, 42, of Woodbridge, Virginia, died Nov. 24 in northern Syria, of wounds sustained in an improvised explosive device blast, according to a DoD news release issued yesterday.

Dayton, who was supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, was assigned to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit Two, which is based in Virginia Beach, Virginia, the release said.

On Thanksgiving Day, Defense Secretary Ash Carter offered his condolences to Dayton’s family, friends and other loved ones.

“I am deeply saddened by the news on this Thanksgiving Day that one of our brave service members has been killed in Syria while protecting us from the evil of ISIL,” Carter said in a Nov. 24 statement. “It is a painful reminder of the dangers our men and women in uniform face around the world to keep us safe.”

The secretary added, “Please keep this service member's family, friends and teammates in your thoughts and prayers, and this Thanksgiving I hope you will join me in expressing thanks to all of our dedicated troops who selflessly protect us every day.”

Dayton was mortally wounded in the vicinity of Ayn Issa in northern Syria, according to a Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve news release.

“The entire counter-ISIL coalition sends our condolences to this hero's family, friends and teammates,” Army Lt. Gen. Stephen J. Townsend, commander of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, said in the release. “On this Thanksgiving, please be thankful that there are service members willing to take up the fight to protect our homeland from ISIL's hateful and brutal ideology.”