Syria and the Islamic State: Analyzing America’s Departure

This content revisits a 2024 argument for the United States to withdraw from Syria while continuing to invest in counter-terrorism measures against the Islamic State. Two years after the U.S. withdrawal, the author finds the situation developed unfavorably, creating chaos and power vacuums instead of an orderly transition. The new Syrian government conquered the Kurdish enclave after the U.S. abandoned its partners, and the withdrawal was bungled, potentially allowing Islamic State detainees to escape. The United States gained little diplomatic credit with either the Syrian or Iraqi governments for its actions.