No deadline set for troops withdrawal from last Syrian enclave: US general

The general overseeing U.S. forces in the Middle East said on Thursday that he was under no pressure to withdraw forces from Syria by any specific date. "What is driving the withdrawal of course is our mission, which is the defeat of ISIS and so that is our principal focus and that is making sure that we protect our forces, that we don't withdraw in a manner that increases the risk to our forces," U.S. Army General Joseph Votel, head of the U.S. Central Command, said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing. "There is not pressure on me to meet a specific date at this particular time," Votel said.