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Syria: US Will Stay to Prevent Return of ISIS, Carried Out Strikes on ISIS Targets

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) – Following the ouster of Syria’s despotic President Bashar al-Assad by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) Islamic rebel forces on Sunday, the United States announced it will maintain a presence in the country and take steps to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State, Reuters reports.

In a statement Sunday, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East Daniel Shapiro called for the protection of Syrian civilians and respect for international norms amid dramatic scenes of jubilant Syrians rejoicing at the collapse of al-Assad’s long, corrupt, murderous, and oppressive regime.

“We are aware that the chaotic and dynamic circumstances on the ground in Syria could give ISIS space to find the ability to become active, to plan external operations, and we’re determined to work with those partners to continue to degrade their capabilities,” Shapiro told the Manama Dialogue security conference in Bahrain’s capital.

“(We’re determined) to ensure (Islamic State’s) enduring defeat, to ensure the secure detention of ISIS fighters and the repatriation of displaced persons,” Shapiro added.

Meanwhile, US Central Command confirmed it has conducted “dozens” of airstrikes on more than 75 sites, including known “ISIS leaders, operatives, and camps” in the hours since the end of al-Assad’s regime. “There should be no doubt – we will not allow ISIS to reconstitute and take advantage of the current situation in Syria,” Gen. Erik Kurilla, head of CENTCOM, said in a statement. “All organizations in Syria should know that we will hold them accountable if they partner with or support ISIS in any way.”