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David Ignatius: What Trump’s decision means on the front lines in Syria

Washington • The voice of Gen. Mazloum Abdi, the Kurdish commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces militia, is tight and controlled as he describes President’s Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from the country and leave America’s allies to their fate.

"This was something we never expected," he said somberly in a telephone interview Saturday night from his command headquarters in northeast Syria. "Honestly, until now, everything the Americans told us, they fulfilled, and the same thing for us. … So we were surprised and confused. We were not ready for a decision like this."

Mazloum explained the dangers of a terrorist resurgence after Trump's sudden decision.