Islamic State fighters in Raqqa, Syria, in 2014.(Photo: Uncredited, AP)
WASHINGTON —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>The Obama administration has authorized the deployment<span style="color: Red;">*</span>of<span style="color: Red;">*</span>U.S. military advisers into<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Syria<span style="color: Red;">*</span>in a major<span style="color: Red;">*</span>escalation of the U.S. fight against the Islamic State, an administration official said Friday.
President Obama approved<span style="color: Red;">*</span>a contingent of no more than 50 special operations forces to enter northern Syria where they will work with local rebels fighting the Islamic State. The official asked not to be named since he was not authorized to discuss the decision.
The move<span style="color: Red;">*</span>reflects<span style="color: Red;">*</span>concerns that the fight<span style="color: Red;">*</span>against the militants in Iraq and Syria has stalled and needs to be reinvigorated.
Administration officials insist that the move does not alter the basic strategy, which is to support local forces in the fight against the Islamic State and avoid the use of conventional American<span style="color: Red;">*</span>ground troops.
Obama has been mindful of "mission creep," the steady escalation of U.S. involvement that would draw America deeper into a Middle East war.
"I will not put American boots on the ground in Syria — I will not pursue an open-ended action like Iraq or Afghanistan," Obama said in 2013.
Dispatching U.S. Special Operations advisers is not the same as conventional military forces, but it heightens the risk for American troops and places them closer to combat. A U.S. soldier, Master Sgt. Joshua Wheeler, died last week while supporting a Kurdish raid that successfully freed 70 prisoners from an Islamic State prison in Iraq.
The advisers<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the administration is dispatching to Syria would likely help support<span style="color: Red;">*</span>a coalition of about 5,000 Arab forces operating against the Islamic State near its<span style="color: Red;">*</span>de facto Syrian capital in<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Raqqa.
The Pentagon recently began supporting the Arab coalition, saying they were currently engaged in operations against the Islamic State in northern Syria and were in a position to put pressure on militants in Raqqa, which would represent a new front in the war.
The administration has also authorized the deployment of A-10s, an aircraft that is effective in providing close support to ground troops, to Turkey where they will be used in the war against the Islamic State, which is also known as ISIL or ISIS.
The administration says it<span style="color: Red;">*</span>will discuss with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi the establishment of a special operations force that could target Islamic State leaders.
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