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| US to send 200 more troops, Apache helicopters to Iraq to fight ISIS | US to send 200 more troops, Apache helicopters to Iraq to fight ISIS |
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| The US will deploy 217 troops and Apache helicopters to Iraq as part of operations against jihadist group Islamic State, according to US defense officials. The additional troops will bring the US solider level in Iraq to 4,087. | The US will deploy 217 troops and Apache helicopters to Iraq as part of operations against jihadist group Islamic State, according to US defense officials. The additional troops will bring the US solider level in Iraq to 4,087. |
| Most of the additional troops will be US Army special forces, the Associated Press reported. The rest will include teams of trainers and advisers to be embedded with Iraqi security forces fighting Islamic State, meaning US advisers will be stationed near the battlefront as Iraqi units move toward Mosul. Iraq is attempting to retake control of Mosul from Islamic State control. | Most of the additional troops will be US Army special forces, the Associated Press reported. The rest will include teams of trainers and advisers to be embedded with Iraqi security forces fighting Islamic State, meaning US advisers will be stationed near the battlefront as Iraqi units move toward Mosul. Iraq is attempting to retake control of Mosul from Islamic State control. |
| Maintenance personnel for the Apaches will also be included in the troop injection. The Apaches will be available for use in the push to regain Mosul, AP reported. | Maintenance personnel for the Apaches will also be included in the troop injection. The Apaches will be available for use in the push to regain Mosul, AP reported. |
| US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter indicated on April 16 that the US military will boost its operations against Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL). | |
| “You should expect us, to see us, doing more,” Carter said, according to the New York Times. “It will be consistent with the same approach, but it’ll be across all the domains, right up to cyber.” | |
| Carter said any additional US military forces in Iraq and Syria are not replacements for Iraqi security forces or Syrian fighters in opposition to Islamic State. Additionally, a US military spokesman in Iraq said last week that the initial phase of the US-led campaign against Islamic State was complete and that the campaign has moved to a new phase. | |
| “During this phase, we will enable our partners to dismantle the enemy, fragment his forces, isolate his centers of gravity and liberate the terrain he holds,” said Col. Steven H. Warren. | |
| As of April 12, the US-led Operation Inherent Resolve had conducted a total of 11,539 airstrikes against IS targets in Iraq and Syria. Of that total, the US has conducted 8,825 of the strikes, according to the Pentagon. |