Pregnant US teenager moved to Iraq from Syria, officials say

Damaged buildings are seen after fighters from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces took control of Raqqa, Syria, on October 22, 2017. Youssef Rabih Youssef / EPA

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that US forces had moved a person who is under 18 years old to Iraq from Syria and two US officials said she was a pregnant American teenager.

"US forces recently relocated a minor from Syria safely to Iraq," the Pentagon said in a statement.

The US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said she was in the hands of State Department officials in Iraq and would travel back to the United States, although they did not say when.

While not identifying her by name, one official said she was the same person interviewed by CBS News earlier this month near Raqqa, the Syrian city that ISIL once called its capital. US-backed militias declared victory in Raqqa earlier this month.

In that interview, she said she was 15 and had been brought to Syria by her father, an ISIL supporter. The teenager had told CBS that she was from Kansas.

Last month, the Pentagon said a US citizen fighting for ISIL in Syria surrendered to US-backed militias and was handed over to US forces.

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