Steve Bannon resigns as White House chief strategist

WASHINGTON - 19 August 2017: Steve Bannon resigned from his post on Friday as White House chief strategist after being forced out by US President Donald Trump and top members of his team, ABC News reported.

White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said the departure, effective today, was "mutually agreed" to by Bannon and Chief of Staff John Kelly.

"We are grateful for his service and wish him the best," Sanders added in a statement.

Bannon had submitted a letter of resignation to the president earlier this month with an effective date of Monday, Aug. 14, according to sources close to both Bannon and Trump. But amid the fallout from Trump's controversial response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, last weekend and earlier this week, Bannon's Aug. 14 resignation date came and went as the president considered Bannon's future, sources say. Meanwhile, several top Trump aides continued to make the case that he needed to go.