U. S. envoy to coalition fighting ISIS resigns in protest of Trump's Syria decision
Brett McGurk, the U.S. envoy to the international coalition fighting the Islamic State, has resigned in protest of President Trump’s decision to abruptly withdraw U.S. troops from Syria.
His resignation, confirmed by a State Department official familiar with the matter, comes on the heels of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’s announced departure earlier this week over differences with the White House over foreign policy, immediately following Trump’s decision. Mattis said he would stay on until February to ensure a smooth transition.
McGurk’s departure is effective Dec. 31, an earlier exit than his intended departure in mid-February, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss a personnel matter. McGurk submitted his resignation letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday, the official said.
The resignations send a negative signal to foreign partners whose support is crucial to containing Islamic State forces, said experts and former officials.
Earlier this month, McGurk said that the Islamic State was far from defeated despite its loss of territory. “Nobody working on these issues day to day is complacent. Nobody is declaring a mission accomplished,” McGurk said at a State Department briefing. “Defeating a physical caliphate is one phase of a much longer-term campaign.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-envoy-to-coalition-fighting-isis-resigns-in-protest-of-trumps-syria-decision/2018/12/22/a5f42bc0-0606-11e9-b5df-5d3874f1ac36_story.html?utm_term=.8d2cd2b38b25&wpisrc=al_news__alert-national--alert-world--alert-politics&wpmk=1
And the Trumpster fire continues
