US to withdraw all troops from Syria, report says
The US Department of Defense is formulating plans for a complete troop withdrawal from Syria, as reported by NBC News on February 5th, referencing two defence officials, the Middle East Eye reported.
This development comes after US President Donald Trump and his close officials expressed interest in removing all troops from Syria.
Consequently, the Pentagon is creating plans for a withdrawal timeframe of 30, 60, or 90 days.
This report follows a less definitive comment from Trump regarding whether he had notified the Israeli government about the troop withdrawal before his meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
When asked, Trump said: “I don’t know who said that. I mean, I don’t know who said that, but we’ll make a determination on that. We’re not getting, we’re not involved in Syria.”
He continued, “Syria is its own mess. They got enough messes over there. They don’t need us involved in everyone.”
Currently, approximately 2,000 US troops are stationed in Syria, according to a December Pentagon announcement.
Historically, US officials have indicated that 900 troops are present to support the fight against the Islamic State group (IS).
The Pentagon clarified that the additional 1,100 personnel are considered “temporary rotational forces,” typically deployed for 30 to 90 days to fulfil various mission requirements.
However, NBC reported that defense officials have cautioned against withdrawing US troops, warning that it would jeopardise the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who are US allies in the battle against IS.
Furthermore, it would threaten the security of “more than two dozen prisons and refugee camps, housing more than 50,000 people, including roughly 9,000 ISIS fighters” according to the report.
The SDF currently secures these facilities but may abandon them if US support and funding to maintain their operation ceases, the report added.
This potential withdrawal could mirror Trump’s earlier decision in 2018 to withdraw all US troops from Syria, which led to the resignation of then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis, as an act of protest.
In late 2019, Trump withdrew many troops supporting Kurdish forces, prompting Turkey, which views the SDF as a hostile entity that protects “terrorist” Kurdish militias, to invade northeastern Syria and seize territory.
The future of the Kurdish-led forces may hinge on Trump’s decisions regarding US troops on the ground, especially following the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, difficulties setting up a new government, and ongoing clashes between the SDF and Turkish-backed factions in the north.
The Middle East Eye
