"The attack is an example of why the US must remain involved in the Middle East," said Pentagon spokesperson Rob Manning, in a statement he made to members of the press in the Pentagon. " Attack in Egypt highlights need for U.S. involvement in the region," added Manning.
"The US must help partner nations build their own defense and police capacity to "ensure Daesh, al-Qaida and like-minded groups cannot plan and carry out attacks," he said and added that there are 500 in Syria and 5,000 US troops in Iraq.
Over the weekend, President Donald J. Trump spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and discussed the U.S. supply of arms to the SDF. Turkish leaders are worried that arms supplied to the Kurdish portion of the SDF [mainly formed by PKK/YPG] could end up in the hands of the PKK -- a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization.
"Consistent with that policy, we're reviewing pending adjustments to the military support provided to our Kurdish partners [in the SDF], in as much as the military requirements of our defeat-Daesh and stabilization efforts will allow us to prevent Daesh from returning," Manning said. "We remain very clear in that we are going to continue to target Daesh and remain committed to protecting our NATO ally Turkiye."
Weapons provided to the SDF are limited and mission specific, the colonel said. (Ahmet Salim Çakar - ILKHA)