In the past year, U.S. special ops forces deployed to a record-shattering 147 countries.
U.S. to Send Special Operations Forces to Syria
President Obama has authorized the deployment of a small contingent
of elite U.S. troops to northern Syria as part of the campaign against
the Islamic State, also known as ISIL, a senior administration official
tells The Intercept.
The White House is expected to make a formal announcement later on
Friday. Administration officials have been authorized to inform members
of the press of the planned deployment, on condition that the news be
sourced only to a “senior administration official.”
While portrayed by the administration as an intensification of the
current strategy and enhancing “efforts that are already working,” the
deployment of forces represents a clear escalation of the conflict for
the president who has previously said, “I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria.”
The use of special operations forces is increasingly seen as
a preferable alternative to heavy-footprint, large-scale military
missions and occupations of the sort carried out in Afghanistan and
Iraq.
The contingent, comprised of fewer than 50 members of the special
operations forces, will be sent to Kurdish-controlled territory “where
they will help coordinate local ground forces and Coalition efforts to
counter ISIL.” The deployment in Syria may represent a broader effort to
increase the use of elite U.S. troops in the war on the Islamic State.
According to the administration official, the president also authorized
consultation “with [Iraqi] Prime Minister [Haider] Abadi and the Iraqi
Government on the establishment of a Special Operations Force (SOF) task
force to further enhance our ability to target ISIL leaders and
networks.”
