Wall Street Journal the United States is considering a complete military withdrawal from Syria
The Wall Street Journal revealed that the US administration is considering the option of a full military withdrawal from Syria, in a move that may represent a major shift in US policy towards the Syrian issue.
According to sources, the ongoing deliberations within the Trump administration include multiple scenarios to reduce the US military presence, leading to a complete withdrawal, while assessing the implications for anti-ISIS efforts, security balances in northern and eastern Syria, and relations with regional allies.
The widely circulated WSJ report noted that no final decision has yet been decided, and that discussions are still linked to security and political assessments, including future coordination with local forces, the risks of the return of extremist groups, and broader calculations related to the US role in the Middle East.
The report said that the rapid developments over the past week have prompted the US War Department to question the feasibility of the US military’s mission in Syria, following the decline of the positions of the Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), according to three US officials.
Syrian government forces have made dangerous approaches to positions where US troops are stationed during operations against the Kurds, the report said, noting that US forces shot down at least one drone near one of its facilities.
One of the officials added that within a 24-hour period, Syrian forces launched an attack on Syria Democratic Forces (SDF) barracks inside a base that houses a US presence.
On Wednesday, the United States began transferring about 7,000 of the 9,000 detainees to Iraq, amid fears that former fighters and members of their families could flee as government forces move to take control of detention facilities.
The US official added that about 200 prisoners escaped last week from Shaddadi prison after the SDF withdrew from its positions, before Syrian forces re-arrested them after taking control of the facility.
US forces had earlier withdrawn from a number of smaller military positions in northern and eastern Syria, in moves described at the time as a gradual reduction in military presence, while maintaining strategic positions linked to anti-ISIS missions and support for local partners.
Financial Times, quoting a Western diplomat: “The SDF has shown we cannot trust them to manage prisons… The SDF’s abandonment of prisons and its risk of ISIS prisoners escaping has angered everyone”.
