Wednesday, October 28, 2015

US ‘to increase ground raids on Islamic State group'

US troops are intensifying pressure on the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria and Iraq by supporting local forces with an expanded air campaign and occasional direct ground support, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Tuesday.

Carter said the campaign against IS militants was evolving as the US military sought to reinforce ground efforts. He said US forces aimed to intensify pressure on IS group strongholds in Raqqa in Syria and Ramadi in Iraq.

"We won't hold back from supporting capable partners in opportunistic attacks against ISIL, or conducting such missions directly whether by strikes from the air or direct action on the ground," Carter told the Senate Armed Services Committee, using an acronym for the militant group that holds large parts of Iraq and Syria.

Testifying alongside Carter before the Committee in Washington DC, Marine Corp Gen. Joseph Dunford, the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he would consider recommending putting US forces with Iraqi troops to fight the IS group if it improved the chances of defeating the militants.

He said such a move could ensure logistics effectiveness and boost intelligence awareness.

“If it had an operational or strategic impact and we could reinforce success, that would be the basic framework within which I’d make a recommendation for additional forces to be co-located with Iraqi units,” Dunford said.

Keeping up the pressure on Raqqa

Carter stated that he expects the coalition air campaign, of which France is a member, to intensify. Carter said this will involve more operations and aircraft.

His testimony came as Russia is conducting its own airstrikes in Syria, saying it aims to help the Syrian government defeat the Islamic State militants and other terrorists.

While both the US and Russia oppose the Islamic State group, Russia is supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad, whom the US wants deposed. Some Republican lawmakers complained that the Obama administration is not doing enough against Assad.

Carter said to keep up the pressure on Raqqa, the US will support moderate Syrian forces, who have made territorial gains against the IS group near that city. "Some of them are within 30 miles (50 kilometers) of Raqqa today," he said.

He said the US also hopes to better equip Arab forces battling the Islamic State group and increase support to Jordan, a neighbour of Iraq and Syria which is flying missions as part of the anti-IS group coalition.

Carter said he was disappointed that the US effort to form new moderate Syrian rebel forces to fight IS group militants had failed. He said the new approach is to work with vetted leaders of groups that are already fighting the militants and also give them equipment and training and help support them with US air power.

"If done in concert as we intend, all these actions on the ground and from the air should help shrink IS territory into a smaller and smaller area and create new opportunities for targeting IS - ultimately denying this evil movement any safe haven in its supposed heartland," Carter stated.
(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS and AP)

 france24.com
27/10/15
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2 comments :

  1. Les Etats-Unis pourraient lancer une opération au sol en Syrie...

    Washington pourrait mener une opération terrestre contre les djihadistes de l'Etat islamique, a déclaré le secrétaire US à la Défense Ashton Carter.

    Selon le chef du Pentagone, les Etats-Unis "ne s'abstiendront pas" de mener des opérations au sol en Irak comme en Syrie, rapporte la chaîne de télévision NBC. M.Carter a également promis d'intensifier les bombardements américains visant les positions des terroristes.

    "Nous ne nous abstiendrons pas de soutenir nos partenaires dans leurs attaques contre les positions de l'Etat islamique ou de mener des missions similaires par nos propres moyens via des frappes aériennes ou des actions directes au sol", a-t-il déclaré.

    Toujours d'après M.Carter, les efforts de l'armée américaine dans sa lutte contre l'EI seront concentrés sur Raqqa, fief des terroristes en Syrie, ainsi que sur Ramadi, chef-lieu de la province irakienne d'Anbar. Washington maintiendra également son soutien aux forces de l'opposition syrienne modérée, qui ont réalisé selon lui "certains succès" dans la lutte contre les djihadistes aux alentours de Raqqa...........http://sptnkne.ws/YjY
    28/10/15

    ReplyDelete
  2. La fuite en avant de Washington dans sa campagne militaire en Syrie...

    Les tentatives des Etats-Unis d'accélérer le renversement du président syrien Bachar el-Assad engendreront des conséquences désastreuses, a estimé le journal New York Times, évoquant la stratégie militaire de l'armée américaine en Syrie.

    La campagne militaire américaine n'est guidée par aucune stratégie rationnelle et risque d'aggraver encore la situation sur place. L'administration de Barack Obama, en plein désarroi face à la puissance de l'Etat islamique, a décidé d'intensifier sa campagne en Syrie, qui ne prévoit pourtant pas de démarches concrètes ni cohérentes pour régler le conflit syrien, estiment les journalistes du New York Times.

    Au lieu d'avancer des projets de plus en plus agressifs et contradictoires, les hommes politiques américains auraient dû réfléchir à la légitimité des opérations militaires en Syrie, notamment des frappes aériennes et du soutien accordé à certains groupes de rebelles.

    Les législateurs des Etats-Unis se montrent majoritairement indifférents à l'endroit des actions militaires du président, agissant en Syrie sans autorisation formelle du Congrès, souligne le New York Times.

    Le plan des "trois R"

    Entre-temps, le secrétaire US à la Défense Ashton Carter a confirmé une amplification prochaine de la campagne américaine en Syrie, avec notamment une intensification des bombardements américains ciblant les positions les djihadistes, ainsi qu'une opération terrestre..................Lire la suite: http://fr.sputniknews.com/international/20151028/1019151284/us-campagne-militaire-syrie.html#ixzz3psQZjdAV
    28/10/15

    ReplyDelete

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