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CODA 1:
Our newest partner in the battle against ISIL terrorists has just confirmed that Royal Air Force jets have conducted armed reconnaissance operations over areas of Iraq.
The British Ministry of Defense:
Royal Air Force Tornado GR4 aircraft, currently deployed in Cyprus, have been flying intelligence gathering missions over Iraq for a number of weeks. Today, following the Parliamentary approval given yesterday, in company with other aircraft from the international coalition, two Tornados conducted armed reconnaissance operations over areas of Iraq where the terrorists threaten the civilian population. Although on this occasion no targets were identified as requiring immediate air attack by our aircraft, the intelligence gathered by the Tornados’ highly sophisticated surveillance equipment will be invaluable to the Iraqi authorities and their coalition partners in developing the best possible understanding of ISIL’s disposition and help acquire potential targets for future operations, either by aircraft or Iraqi ground forces.
Furthermore, we know that the very presence of coalition airpower over Iraq has a significant impact on ISIL’s efforts to attack the Iraqi people. With no effective defence against air strikes, and knowing the precision with which coalition aircraft can hit them, the terrorists are forced to be much more cautious, keeping their forces dispersed and movement inhibited.
They also know that should they concentrate to deliver an attack against Iraqi or Kurdish troops, aircraft are likely to arrive overhead very soon afterwards.
The Tornados were supported by an RAF Voyager refuelling tanker. Additionally, RAF transport aircraft have in the past 24 hours delivered further supplies to the Kurdish authorities to aid their efforts in the fight against ISIL.
Main article:
Some of the criticisms and concerns more commonly expressed by those who oppose the present U.S. and allied commitment to “degrade and eventually destroy” the ISIL terrorists have centered on the following themes:
• This is a fight that should not be fought by the U.S. alone.
• Where are our European partners?
• To give this fight some credibility and legitimacy, it must also involve Arab countries. We must have their clear and active support.
• This is Iraq’s and the surrounding Arab countries’ fight — they must provide an effective ground component to complement the airstrikes.
• There must be some United Nations “blessings.”
• We must restrict or dry out the source of funding to ISIL.
• We must limit or cutoff off the recruitment of new fighters by ISIL.
Finally, a more a consistent sentiment expressed by the American people: The U.S. must not put “boots on the ground” for this fight. No more slippery slopes.
Here are some recent developments which may start to address those criticisms and concerns.
The battle against ISIS is no longer being waged by the U.S. alone:
According to Secretary of State John Kerry, “more than 60 countries that have joined the effort so far…”
In addition to several Arab countries who have already joined — several of them have participated in airstrikes over Syria — three European allies, Belgium, Denmark and Great Britain have now joined the coalition. France was already a combat partner.
Australia is also, as always, a strong and reliable partner.
Britain’s entry into the fight against ISIL followed an overwhelming parliamentary vote authorizing such attacks — albeit only in Iraq, as did the other two European countries.
It should be noted that British Prime Minister David Cameron also signaled that Britain could expand its air campaign to include Syria after appropriate parliamentary approval.
As previously mentioned, Arab countries have already joined the fight.
On Wednesday, 10 fighter aircraft from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates joined six U.S. fighters in a very successful attack on 12 modular refineries controlled by ISIS — a significant source of income for the terrorists.
Last Monday, partner nations, including Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates joined U.S. forces in military action against ISIL terrorists in Syria.
Even recalcitrant Turkey is showing signs of potential cooperation, for example by using Turkish troops to help establish a secure zone — a haven — for refugees in Syria.
On his way back from attending the United Nations meeting in New York, Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan said, “The logic that assumes Turkey would not take a position militarily is wrong…In the distribution of responsibilities, every country will have a certain duty. Whatever is Turkey’s role, Turkey will play it.”
On the ground, Kurdish and Iraqi forces are already bringing the battle to ISIL in Iraq and so are Syrian resistance forces in Syria.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, says that American advisors are already working with Iraqi and Kurdish forces and that the training and that equipping of Syrian moderates is just beginning, but he also warns that taking on ISIL inside Syria will require a large ground component of Syrian moderates. “We’ve had estimates anywhere from 12,000 to 15,000 is what we believe they would need to recapture lost territory in eastern Syria,” he says.
The U.S. plans to train Iraqi forces — including about 10,000 Sunni “national guard” troops in training camps in Jordan and Northern Iraq — and Syrian opposition forces, including “a well-vetted force of at least 5,000 Syrians, trained in Saudi Arabia and other countries.”
The “Iraqi National Guard,” as proposed by Iraq’s new Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, and supported by President Obama would enable local Iraqis to provide for their own security, be commanded at province level, and still integrate into Iraq’s national security infrastructure along the lines of “the Sahwa Awakening – the homegrown Sunni militia that, alongside American troops who paid their wages, suppressed Al Qaeda in Iraq from 2005 to 2010,” according to the Christian Science Monitor.
As to United Nations involvement, on Wednesday, that body unanimously passed a resolution condemning the gross abuses carried out by the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, according to Secretary of State John Kerry.
During the high-level Security Council meeting, chaired by President Obama, the Council unanimously passed a resolution “that commits UN member states to help stop the flow of foreign fighters and funding to Syria from their territories.”
Any stronger resolution would garner a Russian veto.
In addition to seriously curtailing ISIL’s income from oil, the United States is taking several steps to battle the terrorists off the battlefield and is urging the allied nations to take similar measures.
Such measures include “a Treasury Department announcement of 11 individuals sanctioned for terrorism and the formation of a special program with Interpol that will help countries share information about foreign fighters;” measures intended to dry up outside funding, to fight ISIL’s extortion rackets and illegal taxes, to stop the flow of foreign fighters “flocking to the black flag,” by detecting and disrupting their recruitment and by de-legitimizing the extremists, through the media and elsewhere.
Finally, the “boots on the ground” concern.
We can only rely on the words and promises by those “in charge,” now and in the coming years — for this will be a long struggle.
Secretary of State John Kerry:
This is not the prelude to another US ground war in the Middle East. President Obama has said repeatedly that US ground troops will not engage in combat roles. He means it. I volunteered to serve and fought in a war I came to believe was a mistake. I take that lesson seriously. This will not be another one of those interventions.
But Kerry also says, “The Islamic State rules at the barrel of a gun and the blade of a knife, and that’s the only language its adherents seem to understand.”
CODA 2:
U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, Saudi Arabian, Jordanian and UAE attack and fighter aircraft and RPVs continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria Friday and today.
In Syria, an ISIL vehicle was destroyed south of Al-Hasakah. Also near Al-Hasakah several buildings that were part of an ISIL garrison were destroyed. An ISIL command and control facility near Manbij was damaged. An ISIL building and two armed vehicles at the Kobani border crossing were destroyed. An ISIL held airfield, an ISIL garrison and an ISIL training camp near Ar Raqqah were damaged.
Separately, U.S. military forces used attack aircraft to conduct three airstrikes against ISIL in Iraq.
Source: DOD
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.