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US likely to end air war against Islamic State in Syria

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The United States will likely end its air campaign against Islamic State in Syria when it pulls out troops, US officials said, sealing an abrupt reversal of policy which has alarmed Western allies as well as Washington’s Kurdish battle partners.

NATO allies France and Germany warned that Washington’s sudden change of course on Syria risks damaging the fight against Islamic State, and some of President Donald Trump’s fellow Republicans said the troop pull-out strengthened Russia and Iran, which both support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Trump’s troop announcement on Wednesday upended a central pillar of American policy in the Middle East and stunned US lawmakers and allies.

France, a leading member of the US-led coalition, said it would keep its troops in northern Syria for now because Islamic State militants had not been swept away.

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