Iraq News

Fight against ISIS in Syria may end soon: US envoy

A top US diplomat said on Wednesday (November 14th) that the Trump administration hopes the US-backed fight against the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) in its last foothold in northeastern Syria will end within months, al-Arabiya reported.

But American forces will remain to ensure the "enduring defeat" of the militant group, said ambassador James Jeffrey, the US special representative for Syria engagement.

He said the US believes the way forward in Syria includes defeating ISIS, reinvigorating the political process and winding down the long-running civil war.

"What we are looking for is the enduring defeat of ISIS, a reinvigorated and irreversible political process in Syria led by the Syrian people and facilitated by the UN, and de-escalation of the conflict that will include all Iranian-commanded forces departing from the entirety of Syria," Jeffrey told a State Department press briefing.

The US hopes to see the formation of a committee before the end of the year to work on a new constitution for Syria as agreed by the leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Turkey during their meeting in Istanbul in October, he said.

US forces would remain in place after coalition forces prevail over ISIS military units to ensure the group does not regenerate itself, he added.

"The enduring defeat means not simply smashing the last of ISIS’ conventional military units holding terrain, but ensuring that ISIS does not immediately come back in sleeper cells, come back as an insurgent movement," Jeffrey said.

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