and the vast majority of ISIL's victims have been Muslim."
Posted on 09/11/2014 6:40:15 AM PDT by xzins
President Barack Obama addressed Americans Wednesday night increasingly concerned about the threat Islamic State militants are posing in the Middle East and about their commander in chief's ability to face it.
In his prime time address, the president reminded people of the uniquely brutal character of ISIS.
"They execute captured prisoners," he said. "They kill children. They enslave, rape and force women into marriage. They threaten a religious minority with genocide."
Despite the militant's name, the president told Americans, "ISIL is not 'Islamic.' No religion condones the killing of innocents, and the vast majority of ISIL's victims have been Muslim."
In concert with its allies, the president says America will continue fighting the group from the air, coordinating with Iraqi security forces fighting on the ground. Obama also announced he's dispatching nearly 500 more U.S. troops to assist Iraq's security forces.
He also called on Congress to approve a program to train and arm moderate rebels in Syria who are fighting both ISIS and the Syrian Army. However, he insists no U.S. troops will be used in ground combat.
"This is not our fight alone," the president said. "We cannot do for Iraqis what they must do for themselves, nor can we take the place of Arab partners in securing their region."
The president also walked back an earlier statement saying he now won't hesitate taking action against ISIS in Syria.
"This is a core principle of my presidency," he says. "If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven."
Speaking on the eve of September 11, Obama says his administration is not aware of a credible threat of a potential attack by ISIS in the U.S. However, he did express concerns about Americans and Europeans who have joined the militant group returning to their home countries to launch attacks.
The president's pro-aggression stance is in contrast to the policy of his administration which has been to draw down forces in the Middle East.
However, recent polling shows a majority of Americans think the president isn't prepared to do what it takes to defeat ISIS and that he's weak and indecisive on foreign policy. Certainly the White House hopes this speech puts some of those concerns to rest.
The president has briefed House and Senate leaders in recent days.
House Speaker John Boehner says those briefings will continue and that he still has questions.
"A speech is not the same things as a strategy," he said in a statement. "While the president presented a compelling case for action, many questions remain about the way in which the president intends to act."
House Republicans plan to meet Thursday morning to discuss the situation.
The following is a transcript of the entire speech as released by The White House:
"My fellow Americans - tonight, I want to speak to you about what the United States will do with our friends and allies to degrade and ultimately destroy the terrorist group known as ISIL.
As commander in chief, my highest priority is the security of the American people. Over the last several years, we have consistently taken the fight to terrorists who threaten our country. We took out Osama bin Laden and much of al-Qaida's leadership in Afghanistan and Pakistan. We've targeted al-Qaida's affiliate in Yemen, and recently eliminated the top commander of its affiliate in Somalia. We've done so while bringing more than 140,000 American troops home from Iraq, and drawing down our forces in Afghanistan, where our combat mission will end later this year. Thanks to our military and counterterrorism professionals, America is safer.
Still, we continue to face a terrorist threat. We cannot erase every trace of evil from the world, and small groups of killers have the capacity to do great harm. That was the case before 9/11, and that remains true today. That's why we must remain vigilant as threats emerge. At this moment, the greatest threats come from the Middle East and North Africa, where radical groups exploit grievances for their own gain. And one of those groups is ISIL - which calls itself the "Islamic State."
Now let's make two things clear: ISIL is not "Islamic." No religion condones the killing of innocents, and the vast majority of ISIL's victims have been Muslim. And ISIL is certainly not a state. It was formerly al-Qaida's affiliate in Iraq, and has taken advantage of sectarian strife and Syria's civil war to gain territory on both sides of the Iraq-Syrian border. It is recognized by no government, nor the people it subjugates. ISIL is a terrorist organization, pure and simple. And it has no vision other than the slaughter of all who stand in its way.
In a region that has known so much bloodshed, these terrorists are unique in their brutality. They execute captured prisoners. They kill children. They enslave, rape and force women into marriage. They threatened a religious minority with genocide. In acts of barbarism, they took the lives of two American journalists - Jim Foley and Steven Sotloff.
So ISIL poses a threat to the people of Iraq and Syria, and the broader Middle East - including American citizens, personnel and facilities. If left unchecked, these terrorists could pose a growing threat beyond that region - including to the United States. While we have not yet detected specific plotting against our homeland, ISIL leaders have threatened America and our allies. Our intelligence community believes that thousands of foreigners - including Europeans and some Americans - have joined them in Syria and Iraq. Trained and battle-hardened, these fighters could try to return to their home countries and carry out deadly attacks.
I know many Americans are concerned about these threats. Tonight, I want you to know that the United States of America is meeting them with strength and resolve. Last month, I ordered our military to take targeted action against ISIL to stop its advances. Since then, we have conducted more than 150 successful airstrikes in Iraq. These strikes have protected American personnel and facilities, killed ISIL fighters, destroyed weapons, and given space for Iraqi and Kurdish forces to reclaim key territory. These strikes have helped save the lives of thousands of innocent men, women and children.
But this is not our fight alone. American power can make a decisive difference, but we cannot do for Iraqis what they must do for themselves, nor can we take the place of Arab partners in securing their region. That's why I've insisted that additional U.S. action depended upon Iraqis forming an inclusive government, which they have now done in recent days. So tonight, with a new Iraqi government in place, and following consultations with allies abroad and Congress at home, I can announce that America will lead a broad coalition to roll back this terrorist threat.
Our objective is clear: We will degrade, and ultimately destroy, ISIL through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy.
First, we will conduct a systematic campaign of airstrikes against these terrorists. Working with the Iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions, so that we're hitting ISIL targets as Iraqi forces go on offense. Moreover, I have made it clear that we will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country, wherever they are. That means I will not hesitate to take action against ISIL in Syria, as well as Iraq. This is a core principle of my presidency: If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven.
Second, we will increase our support to forces fighting these terrorists on the ground. In June, I deployed several hundred American service members to Iraq to assess how we can best support Iraqi Security Forces. Now that those teams have completed their work - and Iraq has formed a government - we will send an additional 475 service members to Iraq. As I have said before, these American forces will not have a combat mission - we will not get dragged into another ground war in Iraq. But they are needed to support Iraqi and Kurdish forces with training, intelligence and equipment. We will also support Iraq's efforts to stand up National Guard Units to help Sunni communities secure their own freedom from ISIL control.
Across the border, in Syria, we have ramped up our military assistance to the Syrian opposition. Tonight, I again call on Congress to give us additional authorities and resources to train and equip these fighters. In the fight against ISIL, we cannot rely on an Assad regime that terrorizes its people; a regime that will never regain the legitimacy it has lost. Instead, we must strengthen the opposition as the best counterweight to extremists like ISIL, while pursuing the political solution necessary to solve Syria's crisis once and for all.
Third, we will continue to draw on our substantial counterterrorism capabilities to prevent ISIL attacks. Working with our partners, we will redouble our efforts to cut off its funding; improve our intelligence; strengthen our defenses; counter its warped ideology; and stem the flow of foreign fighters into - and out of - the Middle East. And in two weeks, I will chair a meeting of the U.N. Security Council to further mobilize the international community around this effort.
Fourth, we will continue providing humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians who have been displaced by this terrorist organization. This includes Sunni and Shia Muslims who are at grave risk, as well as tens of thousands of Christians and other religious minorities. We cannot allow these communities to be driven from their ancient homelands.
This is our strategy. And in each of these four parts of our strategy, America will be joined by a broad coalition of partners. Already, allies are flying planes with us over Iraq; sending arms and assistance to Iraqi Security Forces and the Syrian opposition; sharing intelligence; and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. Secretary Kerry was in Iraq today meeting with the new government and supporting their efforts to promote unity, and in the coming days he will travel across the Middle East and Europe to enlist more partners in this fight, especially Arab nations who can help mobilize Sunni communities in Iraq and Syria to drive these terrorists from their lands. This is American leadership at its best: we stand with people who fight for their own freedom; and we rally other nations on behalf of our common security and common humanity.
My administration has also secured bipartisan support for this approach here at home. I have the authority to address the threat from ISIL. But I believe we are strongest as a nation when the president and Congress work together. So I welcome congressional support for this effort in order to show the world that Americans are united in confronting this danger.
Now, it will take time to eradicate a cancer like ISIL. And any time we take military action, there are risks involved - especially to the servicemen and women who carry out these missions. But I want the American people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will not involve American combat troops fighting on foreign soil. This counterterrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist, using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground. This strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us, while supporting partners on the front lines, is one that we have successfully pursued in Yemen and Somalia for years. And it is consistent with the approach I outlined earlier this year: to use force against anyone who threatens America's core interests, but to mobilize partners wherever possible to address broader challenges to international order.
My fellow Americans, we live in a time of great change. Tomorrow marks 13 years since our country was attacked. Next week marks six years since our economy suffered its worst setback since the Great Depression. Yet despite these shocks, through the pain we have felt and the grueling work required to bounce back - America is better positioned today to seize the future than any other nation on Earth.
Our technology companies and universities are unmatched; our manufacturing and auto industries are thriving. Energy independence is closer than it's been in decades. For all the work that remains, our businesses are in the longest uninterrupted stretch of job creation in our history. Despite all the divisions and discord within our democracy, I see the grit and determination and common goodness of the American people every single day - and that makes me more confident than ever about our country's future.
Abroad, American leadership is the one constant in an uncertain world. It is America that has the capacity and the will to mobilize the world against terrorists. It is America that has rallied the world against Russian aggression, and in support of the Ukrainian peoples' right to determine their own destiny. It is America - our scientists, our doctors, our know-how - that can help contain and cure the outbreak of Ebola. It is America that helped remove and destroy Syria's declared chemical weapons so they cannot pose a threat to the Syrian people - or the world - again. And it is America that is helping Muslim communities around the world not just in the fight against terrorism, but in the fight for opportunity, tolerance and a more hopeful future.
America, our endless blessings bestow an enduring burden. But as Americans, we welcome our responsibility to lead. From Europe to Asia - from the far reaches of Africa to war-torn capitals of the Middle East - we stand for freedom, for justice, for dignity. These are values that have guided our nation since its founding. Tonight, I ask for your support in carrying that leadership forward. I do so as a commander in chief who could not be prouder of our men and women in uniform - pilots who bravely fly in the face of danger above the Middle East, and service members who support our partners on the ground.
When we helped prevent the massacre of civilians trapped on a distant mountain, here's what one of them said. "We owe our American friends our lives. Our children will always remember that there was someone who felt our struggle and made a long journey to protect innocent people."
That is the difference we make in the world. And our own safety - our own security - depends upon our willingness to do what it takes to defend this nation, and uphold the values that we stand for - timeless ideals that will endure long after those who offer only hate and destruction have been vanquished from the Earth.
May God bless our troops, and may God bless the United States of America."
Yeah, lets go to war and refuse to identify the enemy! I am so sick of the media hiding behind this stupid acronym!
Using ISIL instead of ISIS is,
as another poster put it
like referring to the SW United States as “Aztlan”.
“L” refers to “Levant”, which encompasses and centers on Israel.
“ISIL is not ‘Islamic”
That is simply breathtaking. How the hell can he even say that with a straight face? To me that is nothing more than spitting in the face of America.
Was that statement intended to piss off the Muslims or just give them a good laugh?
Obama is violating the first rule of War.... KNOW YOUR ENEMY.
We will never defeat ISIL until we recognize who they are.
We do.
He and his minions don't.
Thank you.
That has been my impression ever since the world became outraged at the massacre of Christians and Obama was able to glide alongside them but only because of 'yazidis'.
I was offended then. I'm offended now, and you've nailed part of it. He can't say that Christians are being martyred by muslims.
Obama is playing what he thinks is a subtle propaganda game. We see right through it.
MrD and I settled down in our bed to watch his speech but we both fell asleep and awoke when it was over. I am not even curious about what he said.
These guys may be YOUR enemy, but not his...
Infidels are not Innocents. They are an affront to Allah.
The Muslims who get killed are Infidel collaborators, heretical shias, Alawites etc., and secular Muslims who don't follow the religion as written in the Koran and Hadiths.
ISIS is doing exactly what Allah wants them to do.
Read the Koran and Hadiths.- Tom
That is exactly why I pinged you. You have a gift for the concise. And you're dead on right.
This game he's playing is evil....true wickedness.
His enemy is US!
So the moslems committing acts of terror and treason on the high seas for 1,400 years were outliers?
Read my tagline
HUH, ISIS is not an Islamic state, the man has lost it.
I have just heard off someone that he also said this morning in a speech at the Pentagon that he will not start pulling troops out of Afghanistan due to the combat faze is over.
So now he tells the enemy what we will do like in Iraq{that went well sarc} and he alone has told the enemy the war is over with them.
He is a complete disaster and can’t be in his right mind at all, he is the one who needs a physiological test
he just said this morning the combat part in Afghanistan is nearly over and within months will pull all troops over.
He;s an idiot who has no clue about who this enemy is and then tells the enemy it’s over for us we are leaving them to their own devices.
ISIL is not “Islamic”
And a pigs a$$ isn’t pork......
We need to stop using ISIS or ISIL and start using “Islamic Calipate” or something like it that spells this out clearly. For all I know, the part of America that remembers their history, thinks ISIS is a group that follows an ancient Egyptian fertility goddess.
In any case, as you say it’s critical to know who your enemy is. Otherwise, who do you shoot....just anybody, or just nobody?
LOL!
That's the BS they're trying to sell. Amazing, isn't it?
sure he does, he has sent millions of US tax dollars to Kenya
And yet mosques continue to pop up all over the United States and the politicians keep telling us that islam is a religion of peace. Insanity.
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