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American forces proceed to occupy the nation’s oil-rich northeast, the place they’ve been accused of stealing oil and different assets
Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz has launched a Warfare Powers Decision looking for to finish US army motion in Syria, arguing Congress had by no means approved the almost decade-long occupation.
Unveiled on Wednesday, the laws would direct President Joe Biden to take away all US forces from Syria no later than 15 days after the invoice is adopted. Gaetz, the decision’s sponsor, cited a latest raid in Syria which left a number of servicemen wounded, questioning why American troops are nonetheless within the nation.
“Congress has by no means approved using army pressure in Syria. The USA is at the moment not in a struggle with or towards Syria, so why are we conducting harmful army operations there?” he mentioned in a press launch. “President Biden should take away all US Armed Forces from Syria. America First means truly placing the individuals of our nation first – not the pursuits of the army industrial advanced.”
Gaetz went on to state that the 80-year-old Biden “doesn’t have a cognitive grasp on the Syrian battle,” pointing to an August 2021 interview with ABC Information through which the president appeared to recommend there have been no US troops in Syria. Washington has saved round 900 troopers there for a number of years, together with on the time of the interview.
As a result of Warfare Powers Resolutions are privileged laws, Congress will likely be pressured to vote on the brand new measure inside 18 days of its introduction.
The US army has been lively in Syria since as early as 2014, flying numerous airstrikes towards choose militant teams and, at instances, the Syrian authorities. Intermittent floor deployments started the identical yr.
Below President Barack Obama, Washington doled out a whole bunch of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in weapons to an array of jihadist insurgent factions looking for to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, although the hassle later fizzled following Russian and Iranian army intervention on the request of Damascus.
Whereas American involvement in Syria slowed after Obama left workplace, in 2019 President Donald Trump mentioned some US troops would stay within the nation “for the oil,” overtly suggesting Washington would merely “maintain” the power assets. Since then, Syrian officers have accused the Pentagon of constructing off with massive quantities of oil taken from provinces within the northeast, the place US forces have lengthy embedded with Kurdish militia teams.
A variety of US troops additionally proceed to occupy a base close to al-Tanf in southern Syria, stationed alongside Arab fighters who beforehand aimed to oust the federal government in Damascus.
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