The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, made a surprise visit to Syria on Saturday to assess the nearly eight-year-old mission to fight the Islamic State group and review measures to protect American forces from attack.
Milley told reporters traveling with him that he believed American forces and what he called their Kurdish-led Syrian partners were making progress in ensuring the enduring defeat of the Islamic State.
When asked if he thought the Syria mission was worth the risk, Milley linked it to the security of the United States and its allies, saying: "If you think that's important, the answer is 'yes'."
Hundreds of American soldiers are deployed as part of a US-led coalition against the organization in the areas controlled by the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces, led by the Kurdish People's Protection Units, in northern and northeastern Syria.
From time to time, US forces and the international coalition forces led by Washington launch raids or airdrops against suspected members of ISIS.
And the American forces succeeded in eliminating or arresting leaders in several operations, the most prominent of which was the killing of the leaders of the Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in October 2019, then Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi last February in Idlib Governorate (northwest).
ISIS - which in 2014 took control of large areas of Syria and Iraq - suffered a first defeat in Iraq in 2017, then Syria in 2019, and lost all of its main areas of control.
However, its hidden members still launch attacks, albeit limited ones, in the two countries, especially against the security forces, and the organization also claims attacks in other countries.