Posted on 02/05/2017 8:21:12 AM PST by Texas Fossil
Planning for the final assault on Raqqa, the capital of the Islamic State’s caliphate, had been grinding on for more than seven months. There had been dozens of meetings of President Barack Obama’s top national security team, scores of draft battle plans and hundreds of hours of anguished, late-night debates.
There were no good options, but Obama’s top foreign policy advisers were convinced that they had finally settled on an approach that could work — arming Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, current and former U.S. officials said. There was just one problem: The Obama team had deliberated for so long that there was little time left to pull the trigger. Trump’s advisers had also sent word that they wanted to make the decision.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
The assault on Raqqah is in it's 2nd day. It is a joint effort by Kurds and Arab forces. With US Special Ops on hand supporting the effort. (not sure if directing or hands on, or the number involved)
I pray daily that this will be resolved with the least possible loss of civilian and liberators lives.
Have concluded from much study of this, that this is the compromise that Trump's advisors came up with that allowed action now. I have great confidence in General Mattis. May they send a bunch of baby butchering ISIS bastards to hell today.
Obama did everything he could to delay or weaken any US response to ISIS, a group he funded and supported.
Explains the number one problem with Obama.
Delay, delay, delay
Number 2 - trying to plan the battle from the White House
A smart government doesn’t tell the enemy their plans. We have one now. We didn’t before January 20.
Number 1 problem with Obama? He has always been on the wrong team. He serves the Wrong Master.
Absolutely agree.
Our policy team sounds like morons... “Carter argued that the Kurds understood that they would have to turn Raqqa over to local Arab forces as soon as the Islamic State was defeated.”
point taken
agree
Not sure I agree with this line about the Kurds, but the 0’s probably thought long and hard about setting up the Trumpadmin for this debacle... “It also would put the United States in the unacceptable position of supporting allies of a terrorist group that was carrying out mass-casualty attacks on a NATO member, they said.”
Has the ring of truth to it.
By the way, are those bluish areas on the ComPost map, belonging to "Sunni insurgents," controlled by what are in fact bad hombres who have ISIS sympathies but are themselves just as power-hungry?
Kurds are smarter than that. They are not happy about having to work with the Arab militia, don’t totally trust them. I believe this may be a smart move by Trump, because it can be executed now rather than months later. Window of opportunity is creeping away and all sides saw the urgency to act now.
It appears that Turkey has taken an incredibly bad beating in Al Bab and that with a good outcome here will be real progress.
I don’t wish Turks to have heavy casualties, but I do wish for Erdogan to be squashed like a bug. He is an evil b_tard.
Kurds are fierce fighters and they have sheltered many non Kurds from certain death by ISIS. They deserve freedom.
Move quickly said the people who did not for 8 years...”Rice prepared briefing papers for Flynn, emphasizing the importance of moving quickly to arm the Kurds.”
Sounds a bit like war hawk writing based on what they think Trumps team will do so they can claim credit for it if the action is taken and works.
And carp a out the Trump team if it doesnt or they follow a different path.
Sorry TF, that wasn’t meant toward you .. the WP maggots wrote that head with straight faces .. lol
Yes. Turkey along with some Chechens and some more foreign mercs are burried down in Al Bab. And there is al Nusra (al Qaeda) and Hezbullah (further South I think). Iran is involved in this but less visible because Assad is using them.
There were a number of Saudi “advisors” captured by Assad’s forces in Allepo. I suspect they have mercs too.
Yes.
What do you think is happening in Al Bab. Erdogan is being badly bloodied there. By ISIS. Oh the irony, Erdogan, Obama & Hillary supported ISIS. Trained, armed, supplied. And now our “ally” (?) Turkey is crying we did not give him enough support. Erdogan does not plan on ever leaving N Syria or in Iraq. He may change his mind eventually, or possibly be voted out.
Agree with all that you said, but, in light of the revelations in this story, I wonder if this mission has been compromised.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3521386/posts
IF this really took place, $100 says Hussein wasn't present for any of them.
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