Posted on 10/18/2016 12:30:17 PM PDT by Lorianne
Podcast 9:37
Preparations are already well underway. The U.S. military is arming and training SDF units and recruiting Arab rebels willing to participate. The administration is considering direct arming of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia for the operation, over Turkey’s objections. Officials know there are limits to what Kurdish troops should be allowed to do.
“We’re not going to have the YPG go in and hold Raqqa. We are actively recruiting an Arab force, and we’ll have as many Arabs as possible,” the senior administration official said. “If you want to build another force to do it, Daesh will be in Raqqa another two years. You’ve got to work with what you’ve got.”
Not all administration officials agree that Raqqa should be liberated as soon as possible. Some advocate slowing the preparations and waiting for more pieces to fall into place. Recent victories over the Islamic State in the nearby Manbij pocket in Syria are still fresh and fragile. Tensions are high between the Turkish and Kurdish forces eyeing each other there. Arab rebel groups have inflicted heavy losses but also have taken them.
“Inside the administration, there are those who would advocate taking their time, having a more competent stabilization force and developing a plan for the day after,” said Charles Lister, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute. He said rushing too fast into Raqqa is “setting us up for a disaster.”
Obama administration debates the wisdom of rushing to retake Raqqa
Wagging the dog?
Wagging the pussy.
“You’ve got to work with what you’ve got.”
Translation: we are going to take Raqqa from ISIS and give it to a different group of terrorists.
Precisely
Meet the new beheaders. Kinder and gentler than the other beheaders.
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