U.S. confirms American troops killed in blast

The Islamic State asserted responsibility Wednesday for a suicide blast in the U.S.-patrolled Syrian city of Manbij, the first such attack since President Donald Trump said American forces would withdraw from the country because the militant group has been largely defeated.

A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition battling the Islamic State said that U.S. service members were killed while conducting a routine patrol in the city but did not say how many died or provide further details.

U.S. officials told The Post that initial reports suggested four Americans may have died. In addition, at least three Americans are believed to have been wounded, one of them critically, according to a person familiar with the situation who spoke on the condition of anonymity about the still-evolving conditions on the ground.

The Islamic State’s unofficial news agency, Amaq, said the attacker used an explosives-laden vest to target coalition forces and that nine American troops were killed or injured. Amaq presented no evidence for that claim.

The White House said in a statement Wednesday that Trump has been “fully briefed” on the Manbij attack and that officials would continue to monitor the situation.

Surveillance camera video, apparently from the site of the attack, showed the explosion erupting on a busy sidewalk, sending a child running from the flames with hands clasped over his ears. Bodies and blood trails could be seen spread across the ground in photographs from the immediate aftermath.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 19 people were wounded or killed. A Kurdish news agency reported that at least 10 people were injured in the attack, which it said occurred outside a popular restaurant.