Trump weighing whether to remove US military forces from Syria

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Donald Trump is considering whether or not to pull out US military forces from Syria, the White House said Friday.

"He, as the Commander in Chief of the United States military, reserves the right to review troop deployments overseas at any point in time," spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

When asked if the matter is a topic of ongoing deliberations, Leavitt simply said, "Yes."

Trump on Thursday said he "will make a determination" regarding the American forces that have been stationed to bolster counter-ISIS (Daesh) efforts in Syria.

"We're not involved in Syria. Syria is in its own mess. They've got enough messes over there. They don't need us involved," he said.

Israel's official public broadcasting Kan reported Tuesday that “senior White House officials conveyed a message to their Israeli counterparts indicating that President Trump intends to pull thousands of US troops from Syria.”

According to a Pentagon announcement in December, the US has some 2,000 troops deployed in Syria, which is about 1,100 more than it had previously disclosed.