Posted on 10/26/2015 1:51:23 PM PDT by robowombat
Top leaders at the Pentagon are considering a range of options to bolster the military campaign against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), including embedding some U.S. troops with Iraqi forces, according to two U.S. officials.
U.S. military commanders have forwarded several options to the Defense Department in the last several weeks, the officials told The Hill, as part of a mounting push within the administration to more aggressively target the terrorist group.
One of the options presented was embedding U.S. troops with Iraqi security forces; they would have the ability to call in airstrikes, a step that would bring American forces to the front lines. But even without a role in direct combat, that option would skirt close to having “boots on the ground” in Iraq — something President Obama has vowed not to do in the military campaign against ISIS.
The White House has repeatedly said U.S. troops would not have a "combat role" or be engaged in "large-scale ground combat" in Iraq.
A second option sent to Pentagon leaders would embed U.S. forces with Iraqis closer to the battlefield, at the level of a brigade or a battalion.
U.S. troops are now embedded with Iraqis at the division level, which keeps them stationed at headquarters.
Some of the options sent to Pentagon leaders would entail "high" risk for U.S. troops in Iraq and require more personnel, one of the officials said.
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford will have an opportunity to discuss the options for the ISIS campaign when they testify Tuesday in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
One of the biggest topics of discussion at the hearing will be the way forward in Syria, where the White House recently suspended a program to train and equip rebel forces after it fell woefully short of expectations.
After six months, the program had produced only about 80 rebels, compared with a target number of 5,000 by the end of the year. Some of the trainees admitted to handing over U.S.-supplied equipment to al Qaeda affiliate the Nusra Front.
Complicating the situation in Syria further, Russia has launched an airstrike campaign in the country to shore up President Bashar Assad.
Another option under consideration, one of the officials said, is to send more ammunition and weapons to a coalition of rebel groups battling ISIS and Assad's regime. The U.S. military recently airdropped 50 tons of ammunition to the Syrian Arab Coalition, which includes about a dozen Syrian rebel groups.
Also under consideration is increased targeting of ISIS's production and sale of oil on the black market. The U.S.-led military coalition has struck oil refineries controlled by ISIS, but officials are looking at using different kinds of weapons to target the facilities.
Carter on Friday gave some insight into his thinking when he said he expected U.S. troops to conduct more raids in the war against ISIS.
"There's always a look at doing more of what works well and doing less of what doesn't work well, and refining our efforts. That will continue," Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis told The Hill on Monday.
"You heard the Secretary allude to the one thing Friday, which is the fact that we're going to do more of these enabling missions and advise and assist and enabling missions outside the wire with trusted partners.
"Clearly there's desire to do whatever it takes to degrade and defeat ISIL," he said, using a different acronym for ISIS.
Now they have asked Putin for help and voila.....Obama says "Here we are....ready to go.....kinda, sorta...
Time for the anti war movement to fire up the vigils! Alll weee areee sayyying, givvvve peace a channnnce...
Oh wait, a Dem is in charge. It isn’t mission creep if we don’t call it that. Nothing to see here, move along.
Yes, yes.
Dissent is the highest form of patriotism!
Maybe it would be a good idea for the POTUS (who has no Military experience or aptitude) to LISTEN TO THOSE IN THE MILITARY WHO KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING AND WILL DO THE RIGHT THING!
Wouldn’t this be the cherry on the top of Obama’s complete, utter failure of a Middle East policy? After telling us that we had to get out of the Middle East and that Bush’s involvement was stupid and evil, he is going back to the Middle East. Only it will be a much more dangerous place, with ISIS and the Russians and our former allies no longer committed to us, exactly because he pulled out in a reckless way. Obama is a complete failure and the world is a more dangerous place because of it.
Unfortunately, this morning I had to sit in a room at the car dealership (the service was to only take an hour) with CNN in the TV. Good ole Wolf and Fareed sat there, explaining how all the problems in the Middle East are because GWB went into Iraq. Not kidding. Fareed apparently has a ‘documentary’ coming up soon, that will explain it all. So no, Big Media will not be assigning any blame to Obama or anyone else in his House of Cards.
Aye carumba
The Pentagon is “considering” it. Not the potus...
Right now under obummer, Patriotism is the highest form of dissent.
I’m not entirely sold on the notion of embedding troops with combat units that have a distressing track record of breaking and running at the first serious opposition. I wouldn’t want to be the guy to give Sgt Jones a radio and tell him I’m deploying him with the Italian army outside of Stalingrad and for him to wait for the Red Army to come at him and call us and we’ll send some planes or something. Mostly because on the off chance he does make it out alive I’d be having my proctologist remove the radio...
Made to order for the enemy islamist murderer soebarkah.
Maybe if we send Obama back in the time machine, and don't leave in the first place, like we told him.
“Top leaders at the Pentagon are considering a range of options to bolster the military campaign”
Problem all along has been Obama. So is it Obama that is asking the for the options? Piss poor writing at The Hill.
Sounds like boots on the ground.
Tsk tsk tsk, Barry, that’s so “republican”
Patriotism for a country whose electorate put Obama in the WH a second time after seeing four years of what he was?
I did a military stint during the time of JFK. The country we live in today is not worth defending.
“I did a military stint during the time of JFK. The country we live in today is not worth defending.”
My dad was a WWII veteran, in a unit which had a 90% attrition rate. Later he got a commission and became a lifer during the Cold War. Less than a year before he died he said much the same thing.
He must have been a heck of a guy. And smart, too. :)
They might furnish the Kurds with military equipment and
other supplies: but no, they can’t do that :it would hasten
the division of Iraq into three parts. Precisely what is
needed!
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