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U.S. Ends Covert CIA Program to Arm Anti-Assad Rebels in Syria
(Washington Post) Greg Jaffe and Adam Entous - President Trump has decided to end the CIA's covert program to arm and train moderate Syrian rebels battling the Assad government. Even backers of the policy have questioned its efficacy since Russia deployed forces in Syria in 2015. "It's probably a nod to reality," said Ilan Goldenberg, a former Obama administration official and director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security. U.S. officials said the decision had the backing of Jordan, where some of the rebels were trained. U.S. involvement in Syria now consists of a vigorous air campaign against the Islamic State and a Pentagon-run train-and-equip program in support of the largely Kurdish rebel force that is advancing on Islamic State strongholds in Raqqa and along the Euphrates River valley.