United States sending ‘special operations force’ to Iraq

Carter said their operations in Iraq would create “a virtuous cycle of better intelligence, which generates more targets, more raids, and more momentum”.

There now are about 3,500 US troops in Iraq.

“Obama’s orders and the chairman’s and my advice, we’re sending special operations forces personnel to Syria to support the fight against ISIL”.

Carter said the number in the new expeditionary force will be “larger” than 50.

Iraq said it does not need foreign troops to fight Islamic State militants.

Carter discussed strategy and noted that U.S.-backed Kurdish forces had recently retaken the strategic town of Sinjar and cut off ISIS’s “main line of communication” between Raqqa, Syria and Mosul, Iraq, which are the two biggest cities still under their control. “Over the past several weeks, because of improved intelligence and understanding of ISIS’s financial operations, we’ve intensified the air campaign against ISIS’s war-sustaining oil enterprise, a critical pillar of ISIS’s financial infrastructure”, he said.

“You don’t know at night who is going to be coming in the window”, he said.

“But what I’ve been very clear about is that we are going to systematically squeeze and ultimately destroy ISIL and that requires us having a military component to that”.

According to a US official, the new USA step against IS could involve up to a couple hundred troops, including the assault teams, aviation units and other support units.

Though the new troops will be based in Iraq, they will have the ability to conduct raids across the border in northern Syria. It will primarily operate as a joint force with other countries, but could also conduct missions with only Americans.

In his briefing to the Committee, Carter appeared optimistic about the anticipated approval by the Iraqi government. “Our assessment is that this force and the operations this force will conduct will provide us additional intelligence that will make our operations much more effective”.

“We fought them before and we are ready to resume fighting”, he said.

The Iraqi popular defense groups of Kata’ib Hezbollah, the Badr Movement, and Asaib Ahl al-Haq also reacted to the announcement by pledging to combat any U.S. troops deployed to the conflict-hit country.

Speaking to the House Armed Services Committee, the Pentagon chief had said a “specialised expeditionary targeting force” was being deployed to help Iraqi and Kurdish Peshmerga forces.

While the force is expected to number only about 200, its creation marks the latest stepping up of USA military pressure on Islamic State while also exposing American forces to greater risk, something President Barack Obama has done only sparingly.