Trumps Weighs Total Troop Withdrawal in Afghanistan

Administration officials seek options as Taliban remains hard to contain

Fighters with Afghanistan's Taliban militia stand with their weapons in Ahmad Aba district on the outskirts of Gardez, the capital of Paktia province, on July 18, 2017. Civilian deaths in Afghanistan hit a new high in the first half of 2017 with 1,662 killed and more than 3,500 injured, the United Nations said July 17. The majority of the victims were killed by anti-government forces -- including the Taliban and in attacks claimed by the Islamic State, the report said. / AFP PHOTO / FARIDULLAH AHMADZAI Photo credit should read FARIDULLAH AHMADZAI/AFP/Getty Images

President Donald Trump may be looking at a wider withdrawal from Afghanistan according to sources cited by The Wall Street Journal.

Trump has long favored a withdrawal from Afghanistan, a position he was particularly vocal on during the later years of a troop surge that saw up to 100,000 troops there in 2011.

While current troop levels are significantly lower, some 8,400 in 2017 according to a Department of Defense (DOD) report, those troops are in a losing battle, with the Taliban gaining ground.

Source: U.S. Department of Defense