Al-Tanf
Al-Tanf (Arabic: التَّنْف) is a U.S. military base in an American occupied part of the Homs Governorate, Syria. It is located 24km (15 mi) west of the al-Walid border crossing in the Syrian Desert. The surrounding deconfliction zone is located along the Iraq–Syria border and the Jordan–Syria border. The garrison is located along a critical road known as the M2 Baghdad–Damascus Highway. The Rukban refugee camp for internally displaced Syrians is located within the deconfliction zone.
"Tanf" redirects here. For the US welfare program, see Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.
A significant United States Armed Forces presence at the outpost began in early 2016 during the American-led intervention in the Syrian civil war in order to train anti-Islamic State fighters of the New Syrian Army armed opposition group, which was dissolved and reemerged as the Revolutionary Commando Army (Maghawir al-Thawra) in December 2016. As of 2024, the Al-Tanf base continues to serve as the headquarters for the Revolutionary Commando Army and a contingent of at least 200 U.S. soldiers operating on behalf of the CJTF-OIR Coalition.
Legality[edit]
The government of Syria[3][4] deems the U.S. military presence in al-Tanf illegal and "considers the presence of Turkish and U.S. troops on its territory as an aggression and demands immediate and unconditional withdrawal of foreign forces from its territory."[5][6] The Iranian,[7] Russian,[8] and Chinese governments[9] have publicly supported the Syrian government's position, regularly criticizing the American presence in southeastern Syria. China's foreign minister has called on the United States to "respect other countries' sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, immediately end the troops' illegal occupation and plundering in Syria."[10][9] In a February 2018 letter, the U.S. justified its occupation by citing the doctrine of collective self-defense as necessary to defend Iraq, the U.S. itself, and other states from IS and other active terrorist groups.[11]
The U.S. has called the al-Tanf base a counter to the Russia–Syria–Iran coalition's residual influence in the area.[12] Later, in November 2019, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that US troops were in Syria "only for oil".[13][14][15]
After the announced withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria, U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton said in early 2019 that U.S. operations in the al-Tanf area would continue as a part of the U.S. effort to counter "Iranian influence" in Syria.[12] On 28 January 2019, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi ruled out the prospect of Jordanian forces seizing control of al-Tanf after American ground troops leave Syria. "Al-Tanf is on the other side of the Jordanian border. As I said, Jordan will not cross its border. We will take every measure we have to protect our security...but arrangements on the other side of the border after withdrawal will have to be agreed by all parties, and they have to ensure the safety and security in the area," Safadi said.[16]