Media: US troops leaving military base in Syria

US troops and military equipment have begun withdrawing from a US military base in al-Shaddadi in Syria's Al-Hasakah province, located near the al-Jabsa oil field, on April 23, government-controlled Al Watan newspaper reported.

According to the paper, military transport convoys are moving toward the Syrian-Iraqi border. No information has been provided about the number of US troops leaving Syria.

Notably, US forces have been in Syria since 2014 as part of the campaign against ISIS (the Islamic State). It maintains a military presence in the country's oil-rich northeast, where approximately 900 troops remain deployed, originally sent to support the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against terrorism. The US military presence has long been entwined with control of the country’s oil fields. 

On April 16, special units stationed at a military base near the Conoco gas field in Deir ez-Zor province were relocated to neighbouring Iraq.

The New York Times reported that three of the eight US operational bases in northeastern Syria will soon be closed, with military personnel reduced from 2,200 to 1,400.

US troops have supported the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) since 2015, which control 25% of the country's territory, including oil and gas fields in Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa and Hasaka provinces.

By Khagan Isayev