US Troops out of Syria: Trump Declares Victory!

Local Editor

US President Donald Trump declared victory against Daesh terrorists in Syria as reports suggest that he is planning to pull out American troops from the conflict-torn country.

“We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency,” Trump tweeted Wednesday, using an acronym for the terrorist Daesh group.

A US military official told CNN the US was planning a "full" and "rapid" withdrawal of troops. The Wall Street Journal said the withdrawal would be from northeastern Syria.

The Pentagon would not confirm the US troop pull-out, but a US official confirmed the "full withdrawal" to AFP, saying Trump's decision was finalized Tuesday.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the official would not provide a timeline for a withdrawal, saying only: "We will ensure force protection is adequately maintained, but as quickly as possible."

"At this time, we continue to work by, with and through our partners in the region," Pentagon spokesman Colonel Rob Manning said.

Most US forces are stationed in northern Syria, though a contingent is based at a garrison in Al-Tanaf, near the Jordanian and Iraqi border.

The move comes just days after Turkey threatened to remove a Kurdish militia from northern Syria if the US failed to ensure fighters leave the east of the Euphrates.

Last week the US responded to Turkey's announcement that a military operation would soon begin against a US-backed Kurdish military in northeast Syria, calling such unilateral action “very worrying and unacceptable.”

Trump has complained that the US has wasted trillions of dollars in Middle East wars, but gets "nothing" in return.

"We spent $7 trillion in the Middle East. And you know what we have for it? Nothing," Trump said earlier this year, promising to focus future US spending on building jobs and infrastructure at home.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team