Riding on a string of successes against the Islamic State in Iraq, the Pentagon upped the stakes Monday by loosening restrictions on what U.S. troops can do there and sending 200 more servicemembers to support Iraqi forces as they try to recapture the city of Mosul.
The Pentagon will also provide $415 million in aid for Kurdish fighters, calledpeshmerga, who will play a key role in the effort to retake Iraq's second-largest city. And it offered to assist Iraqi security forces with U.S. Apache attack helicopters, which excel at providing close fire support to help ground troops engaged in urban combat.
The moves come after President Obama said last week that the Islamic State is on the defensive. The Pentagon touted the recent killings of three of the Islamic State's top commanders in Iraq and Syria as part of a bigger airstrike campaign that won back more than 40% of the group's territory in Iraq.
Monday's new measures allow the U.S. military to assist Iraq's security forces as they enter a critical phase in the fight against the Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, while adhering to White House demands against sending conventional forces to directly fight the militants.
"It does not change the basic elements of the strategy, which is that this has to be a fight that is led by local forces with the support and assistance of the United States and our coalition partners," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
The Pentagon will also provide $415 million in aid for Kurdish fighters, calledpeshmerga, who will play a key role in the effort to retake Iraq's second-largest city. And it offered to assist Iraqi security forces with U.S. Apache attack helicopters, which excel at providing close fire support to help ground troops engaged in urban combat.
The moves come after President Obama said last week that the Islamic State is on the defensive. The Pentagon touted the recent killings of three of the Islamic State's top commanders in Iraq and Syria as part of a bigger airstrike campaign that won back more than 40% of the group's territory in Iraq.
Monday's new measures allow the U.S. military to assist Iraq's security forces as they enter a critical phase in the fight against the Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, while adhering to White House demands against sending conventional forces to directly fight the militants.
"It does not change the basic elements of the strategy, which is that this has to be a fight that is led by local forces with the support and assistance of the United States and our coalition partners," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
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