Canada Announces Withdrawal of Fighter Jets from Syria, Iraq

Canadian officials announced this week that they will be withdrawing their fighter jets from the U.S.-led airstrike coalition against the Islamic State.

Canada's Prime Minister-elect Justin Trudeau said during a press conference on Tuesday that he spoke with President Obama and will be removing the fighter jets from Syria airspace.

Trudeau did not provide a timeline for his country's plans, but did say that Canada is still greatly committed to the fight against the Islamic State terror group.

"About an hour ago I spoke with President Obama," Trudeau said during a press conference.

Trudeau said during the press conference that his country is still "a strong member of the coalition against ISIL," adding that he made it clear to President Obama "the commitments I have made around ending the combat mission."

The announcement comes days after President Obama announced the U.S. would be keeping over 5,000 troops in Afghanistan amid continued turmoil in the Middle East.

The president said during a recent press conference that Afghanistan's forces are still not as strong as they need to be to combat rural Taliban groups that may be slowly growing in power.

"Afghan forces are still not as strong as they need to be," Obama said during a White House press conference, adding ". . .meanwhile, the Taliban has made gains, particularly in rural areas, and can still launch deadly attacks in cities, including Kabul."

Both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, 2016 Democratic presidential hopefuls, applauded Obama's decision to keep troops in Afghanistan.