November 19, 2019

Pentagon: President Trump's order to withdraw troops from Syria allows ISIS to rebuild

Source: USA Today

Journalist: Tom Vanden Brook

President Donald Trump's order to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria in October provided the Islamic State an opening to rebuild itself, giving the terrorist group "time and space" to target the West, according to a Pentagon report released Tuesday.

The Defense Intelligence Agency told the Pentagon's inspector general that the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, has taken advantage of the U.S. withdrawal and Turkey's subsequent incursion into Syria. Trump's decision prompted strong bipartisan criticism for removing military pressure on the Islamic State and leaving Kurdish forces that had worked with U.S. troops to roll back gains made by the terrorists.

Read the full story and more in USA Today.

Author

  • Nicholas Heras

    Former Fellow, Middle East Security Program

    Nicholas A. Heras is a former Fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), working in the Middle East Security Program. His work focused on the analysis of complex...