US pullout from Syria will aid Daesh, cause instability: SDF

It is feared the premature withdrawal of US troops will lead to a resurgence of Daesh.

The United States' main ally in Syria on Thursday rejected President Donald Trump's claim that Daesh militants have been defeated and warned that the withdrawal of American troops would lead to a resurgence of the extremist group.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said in a statement that a premature US pullout would have dangerous repercussions and a destabilising effect on the entire region.
"The war against terrorism has not ended and (the Daesh group) has not been defeated," the statement said, adding that the fight against Daesh was at a "decisive" stage that requires even more support from the US-led coalition. It was the first official comment by the group on Trump's surprise announcement.
Trump's decision to withdraw troops from Syria has rattled Washington's Kurdish allies, who are its most reliable partner in the country and among the most effective ground forces battling Daesh. With US air support, the Kurds drove Daesh from much of northern and eastern Syria in a costly four-year campaign.
The announcement of a pullout is widely seen as an abandonment of a loyal ally.
"The decision to pull out under these circumstances will lead to a state of instability and create a political and military void in the region and leave its people between the claws of enemy forces," the SDF statement said.
Kurdish officials and commanders met into the night, discussing their responses to the decision, local residents said on Thursday. A war monitor said among the options seriously discussed was releasing thousands of Daesh militants and their families from various nationalities who are being detained in SDF-run prisons and camps. It was not clear whether any decision was immediately taken, and SDF commanders were not immediately available for comment.
Arin Sheikhmos, a Kurdish journalist and commentator, said "we have every right to be afraid".
The US announcement came at a particularly tense moment in northern Syria. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly threatened to launch a new offensive against the Kurds but in recent days had stepped up the rhetoric, threatening an assault could begin "at any moment".
The threat from Turkey could drive the Kurds into the arms of Syrian President Bashar Assad, and by extension Iran and Russia.
"This is expected," Ebrahim Ebrahim, a Syrian Kurd based in Europe, said of the pullout.
"But it is not just treason to the Kurds or the people of Syria but to democracy, to morals, if this is true. Yes, true, we fought for ourselves, but we also fought for democracies all over the world," he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed the US decision to withdraw its forces from Syria, saying he agreed with Trump that the defeat of the Daesh group removes the need for the US military presence. Russia has long held that the US presence in Syria is illegitimate because it hasn't been vetted by the UN Security Council or approved by the Syrian government.

• MENA