Trump Administration Reportedly Plans to Pull U.S. Troops From Syria

by Axios | 12.19.18

The Trump administration has decided to pull all U.S. troops from Syria, multiple media outlets reported Wednesday morning, later seemingly bolstered by President Trump tweeting, "We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency."

The big picture: More than 2,000 American military personnel are set to come home "as quickly as possible," according to a defense official who spoke to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the news. Leaving Syria after ISIS' defeat has previously been championed by Trump, who issued a surprise announcement back in March — much to the chagrin of many of his closest aides and later publicly softened — that U.S. personnel would leave the country "very soon."