The Syrian army has taken over the al-Shaddadi military base in northeast Syria following the withdrawal of US troops. This change comes under a ceasefire agreement with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Syria’s Ministry of Defence said on Sunday, "forces of the Syrian Arab Army have taken over the al-Shaddadi military base in the Hasakah countryside following coordination with the American side." The US had controlled the base since 2016, after Kurdish forces captured it from ISIS. Earlier on Thursday, the Syrian army also gained control of the US base at al-Tanf near Iraq and Jordan borders. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the ceasefire implementation as "headed in a positive direction." He said, "There’s been some days that have been very concerning, but we like the trajectory. We have to keep it on that trajectory. We’ve got good agreements in place. The key now is implementation, and we’ll be very involved in that regard." He added that agreements with Druze, Bedouin, and Alawite groups were also needed. Rubio said, "We think that outcome, as difficult as it’s been, is far better than the Syria that would have been broken up into eight pieces, with all kinds of fighting going on, all kinds of mass migration, so we feel very positive about that." Reporting from Aleppo, Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett noted that residents near al-Shaddadi heard explosions and saw fires at the base, as American forces destroyed materials in preparation for leaving. She said this reflects a broader change in US policy to partner directly with the Syrian government. The US has cut its troops in Syria from 1,500 in July to about 900 now, consolidating forces mostly to Jordan. Yet, US air strikes against ISIS continue. From February 3-12, US Central Command reported 10 air strikes on 30 targets, killing or capturing over 50 ISIS members in two months. CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper said US forces will "remain poised to respond to any [ISIS] threats that arise."