‘I am ashamed’: US Special Forces soldier denounces ‘insanity’ of US abandoning Kurds – Washington Examiner

A U.S. Special Forces soldier who most recently trained Kurdish fighters in Syria denounced his country’s decision to remove troops from northern Syria.

Fox News national security reporter Jennifer Griffin posted on Twitter snippets of a conversation she had with an active duty Special Forces soldier on Wednesday. The soldier, whom Griffin did not name, unleashed on President Trump’s decision to pull U.S. forces out of northern Syria, removing maybe the only barrier preventing a Turkish assault on the area.

“I am ashamed for the first time in my career,” the soldier said. “Turkey is not doing what it agreed to. It’s horrible.”

The soldier is on the ground in Syria and has trained natives to be fighters on multiple continents. His most recent assignment was training Kurdish-led forces in Syria.

“We met every single security agreement. The Kurds met every single agreement. There was NO threat to the Turks – NONE – from this side of the border,” the soldier said. “I don’t know what they call atrocities but they are happening.”

Turkey’s military, controlled by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, began its assault on Kurdish strongholds in the area within days of Trump’s Sunday announcement that the U.S. was backing out of northern Syria. The White House has released a statement condemning Turkish aggression.

Kurdish guards are watching over thousands of captured ISIS fighters that would be released if Turkey gains control. Kurdish guards have prevented at least one prison break, though the prisoners will likely be freed by Turkish soldiers soon, according to the U.S. soldier.

“[Trump] doesn’t understand the problem. He doesn’t understand the repercussions of this. Erdogan is an Islamist, not a level headed actor,” the soldier said. “The Kurds are as close to Western thinking in the Middle East as anyone … This is not helping the ISIS fight.”

“The Kurds are sticking by us. No other partner I have ever dealt with would stand by us,” the soldier said.