Syria announced on Thursday that it has taken control of all military bases that previously housed US forces, present for years in the country to fight the Islamic State group, France Presse and Agerpres report.
In a statement, the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that it “expresses its satisfaction regarding the complete surrender to the Syrian government of military sites where US forces were previously present in Syria.”
The transfer took place “in full coordination between the Syrian and American governments,” according to the ministry.
Syria took control of the Qasrak air base in al-Hasakah province, a Kurdish stronghold in the northeast of the country, on Thursday, after the withdrawal of forces from the US-led international anti-jihadist coalition.
A Defense Ministry official told AFP that Syrian forces had entered the base, now “devoid of any American presence following their total withdrawal”.
An AFP correspondent near the northeastern city of Qamishli saw a convoy of US military vehicles heading towards the Iraqi border.
Qasrak, considered a strategic military base in northeastern Syria, has served in recent months as a logistics hub for convoys and military material headed for the neighboring country.
When they announced the withdrawal of American troops from Syria
American troops began their withdrawal from the Qasrak base in late February. They then set a deadline of one month to leave Syria completely, a turning point after years of presence in the country, where they led the anti-jihadist fight, three sources told AFP.
This announcement of the departure of US forces came as the US was massing its military capabilities around Iran, ahead of the February 28 war with Israel.
The withdrawal also comes as the central Islamist power in Damascus, backed by Washington, joined the coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS) group last year and strengthened its control over the entire territory. The authorities captured large regions that were controlled by the Kurds.
The US maintained 1,000 troops in Syrian bases in areas not under the control of Bashar al-Assad, who was ousted in December by the coalition led by Ahmad al-Sharaa, who later became president. These were used to launch airstrikes on ISIS.
The anti-jihadist coalition was established after ISIS captured significant territory in 2014 during the civil war.
The jihadist group was defeated in 2019 in Syria, where Kurdish forces were on the front lines of the fighting, two years after its defeat in Iraq. But it still has dormant cells in desert areas.
