Editorial Board
Trump’s Shameful Abandonment of the Kurds
The U.S. owes the Syrian Democratic Forces some loyalty for their fight against Islamic State.
Dispensable, it seems, to the president.
Photographer: Delil Souleiman/AFP/Getty Images
“Turkey will soon be moving forward with its long-planned operation into Northern Syria,” the White House announced late Sunday. U.S. forces “will no longer be in the immediate area.” The Trump administration thus granted Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tacit permission to attack Kurdish forces in Syria — forces that have been vital U.S. allies in the fight against Islamic State.
This abrupt shift in policy is both ill-considered and shameful.