Enraged by the US withdrawal from northern Syria, residents of Qamishli pelted American troops with vegetables as they left the city, according to video shared by Kurdish news outlets on Monday.
A convoy of armoured personnel carriers is flanked on all sides by irate Kurds shouting “No America” and “America liar” in English while one resident can be heard describing US troops as fleeing “Like rats… America is running away,” in Arabic.
The angry citizens appear to be firing potatoes at their departing former allies but the Rudaw news agency reports that tomatoes were the projectile of choice.
The Kurds were blindsided by US President Donald Trump’s decision at the beginning of October to pull back US troops from border regions in Syria, essentially abandoning the US’ long-standing Kurdish allies as Turkey advanced across the border.
Turkish President Erdogan has agreed to pause his military offensive into Kurdish-controlled areas for five days, with the ceasefire expiring Tuesday. Meanwhile, more than 100 US armoured vehicles and roughly 1,000 personnel were filmed entering Iraq from Dohuk province in Syria, crossing into the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq.
