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The United States military has officially completed the withdrawal of its forces from al-Tanf Garrison in Syria, as confirmed by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) on Thursday.
Finalized on February 11, this withdrawal is part of a broader strategic realignment in the region under Operation Inherent Resolve, which began in 2014 to combat ISIS threats.
American forces have maintained a limited presence in Syria to assist partner troops and ensure the terrorist group does not regain power after its territorial defeat in 2019.
Following the U.S. exit, Syria’s Defense Ministry announced that government forces have taken over control of the al-Tanf base and are now stationed along the borders with Iraq and Jordan, as reported by the Syrian Arab News Agency.
Meanwhile, U.S. military vehicles were seen escorting passenger buses carrying Islamic State detainees from northeastern Syria into Iraq on February 8, 2026. (Str/Xinhua via Getty Images)
The ministry said the handover was coordinated with U.S. officials and that Syrian Arab Army units moved in to secure the base and surrounding areas in the tri-border desert region.
The development follows a Pentagon decision in April 2025 to scale back and consolidate U.S. forces in Syria.Â
Caroline Rose, director of the Crime-Conflict Nexus and Military Withdrawals portfolios at the New Lines Institute, told Fox News Digital that al-Tanf was one of the most strategically important U.S. garrisons in Syria, if not the broader Middle East, as it offered access, insight and intelligence collection along Syria’s borders with Jordan and Iraq.
A satellite image shows the al-Tanf Base in Syria, July 20, 2025. (Planet Labs PBC/Reuters)
“This was not only pivotal during the U.S.-led Coalition to defeat the Islamic State, where there was a threat of cross-border offensives and violence, but also proved key to U.S. deterrence efforts against Iran-backed militia networks that operated in Iraq and Syria,” she said. “The U.S. pullout from Al-Tanf is a signal that Washington is now comfortable with where the counter-ISIS fight is and the defeat of Iran-aligned proxy networks in the region, along with Syrian security integration efforts with the [Syrian Democratic Forces].”
Rose added that the departure could be viewed as a setback for Jordan, which has long depended on the U.S. position at al-Tanf to deter adversarial actors in the region.
Despite the withdrawal, U.S. forces remain prepared to counter ISIS threats, CENTCOM said, noting that in the past two months, American forces have struck more than 100 targets in the region and captured or killed more than four dozen ISIS fighters.
Soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition walk with members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the countryside of Qamishli, northeastern Syria, Feb. 8, 2024. (Orhan Qereman/Reuters)
The change in posture comes just weeks after U.S. forces transferred 150 ISIS fighters from a detention facility in Hasakah, Syria, to a secure location in Iraq.Â
Officials indicated in late January that thousands more detainees could also be moved as part of the broader effort to maintain long-term security in the region.
A view of al-Hol camp, where families linked to the Islamic State group are being held, in Hasakah province, Syria, Jan. 21, 2026. (Izz Aldien Alqasem/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Syria became the 90th member of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, a U.S.-led alliance formed to coordinate international efforts against the extremist group, in November.
Tom Barrack, the U.S. ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria, said Damascus — under interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa — is prepared to assume security responsibilities, including control of ISIS detention facilities and camps, following the 2024 ouster of Bashar al-Assad.