The Islamic State’s caliphate in Syria has been 100 percent destroyed, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Friday.
Sanders informed reporters traveling aboard Air Force One to West Palm Beach, Fla., of the news and said the Department of Defense “made the call” regarding the caliphate.
“The territorial caliphate has been eliminated in Syria,” Sanders said.
The caliphate refers to a stretch of land across Iraq and Syria that was under ISIS control.
Sanders also presented reporters with a map of Iraq and Syria showing what territory had been liberated.
[Related: Fox News reports ISIS has fallen in Syria]
President Trump often touts efforts to destroy the terror group as a key accomplishment of his presidency, efforts which have been spearheaded by a U.S.-led coalition. Trump told reporters Wednesday coalition fighters could have the caliphate eliminated by the night’s end.
As a result of the work in Syria, Trump decided late last year to withdraw U.S. troops from the country. The decision led to the resignation of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, who broke with the president on the troop withdrawal, and criticism from both Republicans and Democrats in Congress.
The Trump administration, however, is now expected to leave a “small force” of roughly 400 U.S. troops there.
