US to withdraw 600 troops from Syria, leaving fewer than 1,000 to help counter IS militants

WASHINGTON – The U.S. volition retreat astir 600 troops from Syria, leaving less than 1,000 to enactment with Kurdish allies to antagonistic the Islamic State group, a U.S. authoritative said Thursday.

The authoritative spoke connected the information of anonymity to sermon details not yet announced publicly.

The U.S. troops person been captious not lone successful the operations against the Islamic State but arsenic a buffer for the Kurdish forces against Turkey, which considers them to beryllium aligned with panic groups.

President Donald Trump tried to retreat each forces from Syria during his archetypal term, but helium met absorption from the Pentagon due to the fact that it was seen arsenic abandoning allies and led to the resignation of erstwhile Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.

The departure of the 600 troops volition instrumentality unit levels to wherever they had been for years, aft the U.S. and its allies waged a multiyear run to decision IS. The U.S. had maintained astir 900 troops successful Syria to guarantee that the IS militants did not regain a foothold, but besides arsenic a hedge to forestall Iranian-backed militants from trafficking weapons crossed confederate Syria.

The fig of U.S. troops was raised to much than 2,000 aft the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas successful Israel, arsenic Iranian-backed militants targeted U.S. troops and interests successful the portion successful effect to Israel's bombardment of Gaza.

Three U.S. troops successful Jordan were killed by a drone fired by an Iranian-backed militia successful January 2024.

In December 2024, Syrian President Bashar Assad fled the country. In the months since, Syrians displaced by much than a decennary of warfare person returned home, but the state remains unstable. Israel has targeted Syrian weapons installations, and determination are immoderate indications that the Islamic State radical is trying to reconstitute itself, and Iranian-backed militias successful Syria stay a menace to U.S. interests.

The withdrawal of the 600 troops was archetypal reported by The New York Times.

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