Conflict coverage · Syria

The United States completes its withdrawal

February – April 2026Key event

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Military & security

Effects & resilience

MilitaryDiplomaticNortheast Syria / Kurdish autonomy

Following January strikes against ISIS after a deadly ambush, and with the integration agreement in place, US forces draw down from February and hand over their last major base to the Syrian government on 16 April 2026 — ending more than a decade of military presence that began with the anti-ISIS campaign in 2015.

Why it mattersThe withdrawal removed the northeast's external guarantor and completed the transition's sovereignty in one stroke — leaving counter-ISIS performance, and the integration agreement's durability, to Syrian institutions under US certification watch.

Confidence: HighSources: Reuters · Al Jazeera English · Established international media reportingMethodology Corrections

Related structure

3 records that this event names, or that name it. Every one is an explicit reference in a published record — nothing here is inferred from subject matter.

Part of

Campaigns whose record places this event inside them.

Northeast integrationImplementation, file by file
Anti-ISISTransfer of responsibility

Participants

Organisations this event records, with the role and confidence it states.

US anti-ISIS mission (historical)Historical associationhigh confidence

Where this fits

This is one entry in the Syria timeline. The full Key Events surface carries every dated turning point with its filters and its essential subset, and this event in place shows what came before and after it. How Vigil grades, dates and sources its claims is set out in the methodology.