U.S. troops were preparing to withdraw from northern Syria Sunday as Turkish forces continued their advance.
The situation on the ground was deteriorating rapidly, a U.S. official with direct knowledge told NBC News.
Hundreds of Islamic State group supporters escaped from a displacement camp in the area and there were reports of alleged atrocities amid growing international alarm.
U.S. forces were at risk of being isolated and there was increased risk of confrontation between Turkish forces and U.S. troops, said the official, who asked to remain anonymous because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
President Donald Trump made the decision to withdraw Saturday night, the official said.
About 1,000 troops will leave the area "as safely and quickly as possible," Defense Secretary Mark Esper told CBS' "Face the Nation" in an interview Sunday.
They will not leave the country entirely, he said.
Esper said that the conflict between Turkish forces and U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters had become "untenable" for the U.S. military.
Trump has largely stood by his decision to pull U.S. troops back to clear the way for Turkish forces, despite growing chaos in the wake of their advance.
U.S. allies have urged an end to the Turkish invasion, which has sparked fears of a renewed humanitarian crisis in the region and a resurgent ISIS threat.
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he Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Sunday that close to 800 members of a camp holding the families of ISIS fighters had escaped after Turkish shelling.
Some Kurdish guards were forced to leave their posts as fighting neared a camp for displaced people near the town of Ain Eissa, a spokesperson for the U.K.-based observatory told NBC News.
"It’s now chaos in the camp and there are people still escaping," Rami Abdulrahman said early Sunday.
NBC News has been unable to independently verify the claim.
The Turkish military and Turkey-backed Syrian fighters continued to advance toward Ain Eissa, the administrative center of the Kurdish-held areas.
As they drove forward, video and photographs appearing to show alleged atrocities carried out by Turkish-backed fighters spread on social media.
Multiple U.S. officials told NBC News the video, which appeared to show the execution of a Kurd, appeared to be genuine.
The video is disturbing and NBC News has blurred the most graphic images.