Small Wars Journal

U.S. Sends Forces to Protect Syrian Oil Fields

Sun, 10/27/2019 - 12:01am

U.S. Sends Forces to Protect Syrian Oil Fields by Jared Malsin and Dion Nissenbaum – Wall Street Journal

The U.S. military sent fresh forces on Saturday to secure oil fields in eastern Syria, two U.S. officials said, as part of a pivot from a decision earlier this month to pull most American troops out of the country.

The movement of troops back into Syrian positions reflects a desire by Washington to preserve some leverage in the region, as Russian and Syrian forces have also moved in, filling a vacuum in areas once under U.S. influence.

Footage of a U.S. military convoy entering Syria from Iraq was released by the Iraqi Kurdish channel Rudaw. Residents of northeastern Syria also posted videos online showing a column of armored vehicles flying the American flag, said to have just crossed into the country from Iraq.

There were no tanks pictured in the images, which couldn’t be independently verified…

Read on.