Is ISIS really out of Syria? And does it even matter?
The 2,000-some US military service-members in Syria have been ordered by President Trump to leave the country within 100 days. All US State Department personnel there have been given 24 hours to evacuate. “We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency.” the president said in a tweet. Is Trump right? Has the Islamic State in Syria been defeated?
Even more important a question perhaps is, does it matter?
First, ISIS has in fact been decimated in Syria. They’re not gone, but the territory controlled by ISIS is a fraction of what it was and their administrative infrastructure has been severely hobbled. Not only have the American military and her regional allies been pummeling ISIS for years so have the Russians, Turks, and of course, the Syrian government itself. It may just be noteworthy that Russia only yesterday announced that they’re drastically scaling back offensive operations in Syria, going from more than 100 military flights a day to just 4 per week.
