Pentagon Advances Plan to Defeat Jihadists
Julian E. Barnes
Wall Street Journal
September 11, 2014
WASHINGTON—With new marching orders from President Barack Obama in hand, the U.S. military on Thursday began setting in motion an expanded campaign to combat Islamic State militants through airstrikes in Iraq and Syria and military training for fighters from both countries.
The operations will unfold gradually over several months, defense officials said Thursday, as the U.S. works to build up intelligence capabilities in Syria and move American advisers into place in Iraq.
A likely first stage will be an expanded air campaign inside Iraq in the coming days. Defense officials said that, at least to start, those airstrikes will look much as they have for the past month, with Navy and Air Force planes hitting the Islamic State’s trucks, armored vehicles, artillery and mortar tubes. Stepped-up strikes in Iraq will also depend on when the U.S. collects information on new targets.
On Thursday, U.S. Central Command announced its latest strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq. That operation hit two machine gun emplacements and a bunker.
Officials wouldn’t predict when the air campaign would expand to Syria. But they emphasized that the mission, at least for now, is to use any future strikes in Syria to weaken the Islamic State’s operation in Iraq.
"There are plenty of targets in Iraq right now," said a senior defense official. "But you have to go where they train, where they hide."
In the coming days, U.S. advisory teams consisting of 12 or so men are preparing to join Iraqi divisions and brigades, moving out of operations centers to begin a more hands-on approach to helping Iraqi units plan missions and execute operations.
As part of the larger U.S. advisory role, Mr. Obama ordered another 475 military service members to Iraq, which will bring the number of U.S. troops in the country to 1,700, including personnel protecting U.S. facilities.
After that, U.S. officials hope that, backed by the U.S. Navy and Air Force planes, Kurdish and Iraqi forces can begin to retake Iraqi territory now controlled by the Islamic State, which military officials believe would be an important milestone.
U.S. military planners are expecting American warplanes to begin hitting a broader array of targets, including logistics hubs and training camps, both in Iraq and in Syria. Some of that expanded campaign likely will wait until Iraqi forces are ready to capitalize on U.S. operations.
"The kind of support we will be giving to the Iraqi security forces will be more aggressive from the air," said Rear Adm. John Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary.
The military plans to begin a campaign of targeted strikes against Islamic State leaders, mostly in Syria where they operate.
But officials also caution that the U.S. needs to develop more intelligence before such strikes can begin in earnest.
Adm. Kirby wouldn’t say when those strikes would commence, noting the Pentagon didn’t want to “telegraph its punch.”
Defense officials said work on a training program for moderate Syrian rebels would begin as soon as Congress approved the $500 million the Obama administration has requested. But officials warned even once the money was approved, it would take several months for the program to begin in earnest.
The training, officials said, is being planned for a facility in Saudi Arabia that could accommodate up to 10,000 fighters. But U.S. officials said the number trained would likely be lower, around 5,000 in the first months of the program.
Officials said finding enough moderate rebels to train—fighters who won’t join the Islamic State—is a problem that the U.S. and its allies must work through.
"The most important thing is you need a vetting process you need to know who you are working with," Adm. Kirby said.
The role of the advisers has been the subject of much discussion in the Pentagon. Mr. Obama made clear that he wants the advisers out of combat and away from the front lines.
When the U.S. considered strikes against the Assad regime in Syria more than a year ago, the military planned to use a barrage of Tomahawk missiles. But officials said strikes in Syria against the Islamic State would likely be carried out by manned and unmanned aircraft.
In part, that is because hellfire missiles and guided bombs are more effective at striking mobile targets, like armed vehicles. But Tomahawk missiles, which can cost $1.5 million apiece, are an expensive way to destroy a militant check point or a pickup truck.
The U.S. is planning to move armed surveillance planes, likely Navy F/A-18E Growlers, to Erbil, Iraq. That would allow the planes to loiter over Iraq or penetrate further into Syria, without refueling.
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