The U.S. will withdraw roughly 600 troops from Syria, decreasing its army presence to fewer than 1,000, a Washington official mentioned Thursday.
The remaining forces will proceed working to include the Daesh group, the official mentioned.
The official, who spoke on situation of anonymity to debate plans not but made public, mentioned the drawdown has not been formally introduced.
American forces have performed a twin function within the area: aiding in operations in opposition to the Daesh group and serving as a buffer between Türkiye and the PKK terrorist group.
During his first time period, President Donald Trump tried a full withdrawal from Syria – a transfer that drew sharp opposition from the Pentagon and led to the resignation of then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who warned it might abandon key allies and destabilize efforts to defeat the Daesh group.
The upcoming departure will return U.S. troop ranges to the place they stood for years following a multiyear marketing campaign in opposition to the terrorist group.
Until now, the U.S. had maintained about 900 troops in Syria, each to stop a resurgence of Daesh terrorists and to restrict Iranian-backed teams from shifting weapons throughout southern Syria.
The variety of U.S. troops surged to greater than 2,000 following Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, incursion on southern Israel, as Iranian-backed teams akin to Hezbollah launched strikes on U.S. forces and pursuits in retaliation for Israel’s bombardment of Gaza.
In one such assault, three U.S. service members have been killed by a drone strike in Jordan in January 2024, launched by an Iranian-backed group.
In December 2024, Syrian regime dictator Bashar Assad fled the nation.
Since then, some Syrians displaced by greater than a decade of struggle have begun to return, although the nation stays unstable.
Israel has continued to focus on Syrian weapons services, whereas Daesh members look like regrouping.
The deliberate withdrawal was first reported by The New York Times.
Source: www.dailysabah.com