Muhannad al-Talla told BuzzFeed that the US troops, who had been training and fighting alongside Al-Tanf's militants, would withdraw from the base, specifying that he was helping to remove equipment. An anonymous US official confirmed the information, emphasizing that this move came as part of US President Donald Trump's decision to pull US troops out of Syria.
Trump announced this decision on 19 December, claiming that the Daesh* terrorist group had been defeated, and since the US troops were present in Syria exclusively for the fight against Daesh, they now had no reason to remain there.
READ MORE: US, French Military Withdraw From Manbij Area in Northern Syria — SDF Source
On December 5, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the Russian General Staff, said that Russia had suggested to the United States to eliminate the military base in Al-Tanf and to establish joint Russian-US control over the zone instead. According to Gerasimov, Washington has not provided an answer. The general also stressed that the United States justified its presence in Al-Tanf by the necessity to counter Iran, which it alleges is transporting weapons and military equipment to Syria.
*Daesh (also known as ISIS/ISIL/IS) is a terrorist group banned in Russia
