US begins pullout from main base in northeast Syria
US forces have begun withdrawing from their largest military base in northeast Syria in what Syrian security and military sources describe as the first phase of a broader drawdown from the region. Dozens of US military trucks and armoured vehicles were seen leaving the Qasrak base in Hasakah province and moving towards Iraq’s Kurdistan region, with the pullout expected to take several weeks. The base at Qasrak has for years served as a key hub for the US led coalition’s operations against Islamic State, supporting deployments across northeastern Syria in partnership with the Kurdish led Syrian Democratic Forces. Even after a full evacuation from Qasrak, the coalition is expected to retain a presence at the Rmelan (Kharab al Jir) base near the Iraqi border, though overall troop numbers in Syria are set to fall sharply. Officials quoted in local and […]