As President Trump announces US preparations to withdraw combat troops from Syria, footage and pictures from its capital Damascus show scenes of calm, with the Christmas season in full swing in a city once paralyzed by violence and jihadist oppression.

“Merry Christmas from Syria’s Damascus. A sight you would have never seen under Obama and Hillary’s Al-Qaeda ‘rebels,'” tweeted Lebanese journalist Sarah Abdallah on Wednesday.

Merry Christmas from Syria’s Damascus. A sight you would have never seen under Obama and Hillary’s Al-Qaeda “rebels”. pic.twitter.com/kiiUjnrpOX — Sarah Abdallah (@sahouraxo) December 19, 2018

Other pictures show Syrian children shopping for stuffed animals and candy at the local marketplaces.

Syrians shop at a marketplace in the old city of Damascus, capital of Syria, on Dec 17. As Christmas and the New Year approach, Syrians in Damascus shopped for gifts, candies and decorations at marketplaces. https://t.co/iFlB3kf9b6 pic.twitter.com/rTePxEsSoc — Global Times (@globaltimesnews) December 18, 2018

A choir of children sang Christmas songs in the Damascus town square, a scene that would have been unheard of only a few years ago when ISIS controlled a large swath of Syrian territory.

Heartwarming scenes of Syrians peacefully partaking in early Christmas celebrations and singing carols in the Syrian capital of Damascus, free of terrorism. This is the beautiful, pluralistic Syria that mainstream media refuses to show us. pic.twitter.com/dA8cvlGJGW — Sarah Abdallah (@sahouraxo) December 14, 2018

Hundreds of Syrians gather for early Christmas celebrations at St. Michael’s Church, in Syria’s Lattakia. Yet, beautiful scenes like these never make it to the Western media. pic.twitter.com/0tFlpDengo — Sarah Abdallah (@sahouraxo) December 11, 2018

Trump had announced that the Pentagon would prepare to withdraw U.S. troops after declaring the defeat of ISIS.

“We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency,” he tweeted.

We have defeated ISIS in Syria, my only reason for being there during the Trump Presidency. — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 19, 2018

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders reiterated that the US is not retreating from its ideological war with radical Islam, rather the military is transitioning to a new “phase of this campaign.”

“Five years ago, ISIS was a very powerful and dangerous force in the Middle East, and now the United States has defeated the territorial caliphate,” White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.

“These victories over ISIS in Syria do not signal the end of the Global Coalition or its campaign. We have started returning United States troops home as we transition to the next phase of this campaign.”

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