Jan 16 Watch 3:33 After deadliest day for U.S. forces in Syria, withdrawal could get more complicated ISIS claimed responsibility for a deadly attack in northern Syria's Manbij that killed four Americans, countering the Trump administration's assessment that the terrorist group had been defeated. While Vice President Pence repeated that the U.S. is now able to "hand… Continue watching
Jan 07 Watch 5:48 How Bolton’s plan for U.S withdrawal from Syria contradicts Trump National Security Advisor John Bolton announced conditions for when U.S. troops could leave Syria. The requirements seemed to contradict President Trump’s declaration that the U.S. would withdraw immediately, a decision that prompted the resignation of former Secretary of Defense Jim… Continue watching
Jan 06 Watch 4:18 U.S. troops will not leave Syria until ISIS does, Trump adviser says During a trip to Israel on Sunday, U.S. national security adviser John Bolton announced that American troops would remain in Syria until the Islamic State is fully eradicated, scaling back an announcement from President Trump last month. "Effectively, Americans aren’t… Continue watching
Dec 31 Watch 7:16 ‘Systemic shortfalls’ obscure true civilian cost of U.S. airstrikes against ISIS The U.S.-led coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria released its latest estimate of civilians killed by U.S. airstrikes since 2014. Over the past four years, 1,139 civilians were killed by accident. But how was this figure calculated, and is… Continue watching
Dec 27 Watch 5:11 This poet put the Yazidi women’s suffering and strength into words By Jeffrey Brown Learning about the horrors endured by Yazidi women at the hands of the Islamic State awakened something personal for Iraqi-American poet and former journalist Dunya Mikhail. In her book "The Beekeeper," she shares first-hand accounts of their pain and heroism. Continue watching
Dec 22 Syria sends reinforcements east after Trump’s pullout plan By Associated Press The reinforcements arrived after U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced he was pulling all 2,000 U.S. troops out of Syria. Continue reading
Dec 20 AP fact check: Trump prematurely declares victory over Islamic State group By Philip Issa, Associated Press President Donald Trump is declaring victory over the Islamic State group in Syria, but the militants remain a deadly force, and U.S. partners warn a premature U.S. withdrawal will allow them to storm back. Here's a look at the president's… Continue reading
Dec 19 Watch 10:54 Trump administration to withdraw military forces from Syria President Trump appears to have ordered an immediate withdrawal of troops from Syria, tweeting that the U.S. had “defeated ISIS” there. But the decision contradicts policy advocated by administration officials and lawmakers. Brookings Institution's Gen. John Allen and Amherst College's… Continue watching
Dec 19 Trump pulling all U.S. troops from Syria, declaring ISIS defeated By Robert Burns, Matthew Lee, Lolita C. Baldor, Associated Press The move contradicts President Trump's own experts' assessments and is sparking surprise and outrage from his party's lawmakers who called his action rash and dangerous. Continue reading
Dec 16 Watch 6:24 How Rukmini Callimachi searches for humanity on the ISIS beat By PBS News Hour After the international community and local security forces won a series of hard-fought victories against the Islamic State in recent years, ISIS is regrouping in Iraq, Syria, Libya and elsewhere. Rukmini Callimachi, a foreign correspondent for The New York Times… Continue watching