US forces continue task in combating ISIS in Syria, Iraq: OIR
WASHINGTON, US (North Press) – The United States of America will continue its missions to fight the Islamic State (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria, even after its forces are attacked by militias with objectives similar to those of ISIS, said Col. Wayne Marotto, the official military Spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), on Thursday.
“The US continues its presence on Iraqi territory at the invitation of the Iraqi leadership to carry out the mission of fighting ISIS,” Marotto told North Press.
He added that the US does not have any goals from its presence in Iraq other than fighting ISIS, “but some militias outside the authority of the state, who have goals similar to ISIS, target the American forces and interests because they want to destabilize and aggravate the security, economic and humanitarian conditions in Iraq.
The “militias” want to see Iraqis in anger and despair so that their extremist ideology can fill the void created by the poverty and weakness of the Iraqi state sovereignty, according to the OIR spokesman.
Marotto believed that the US and the Global Coalition forces had the right to defend their presence on Iraqi territory.
“While we focus on fighting ISIS and supporting the Iraqi armed forces, our forces are under attack,” he noted.
On the Syrian side, Marotto said that the coalition will continue to support the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to fight ISIS, “with capabilities that change according to the data on the ground.”
He noted to the continuation of this so that the SDF will be able to achieve major achievements against the extremist organization and its sleeper cells, which are still deploying and active individually in eastern Syria.
Over the past seven years, “the Global Coalition forces have been able to launch successful operations against terrorists in Iraq and have been able to restrict ISIS’ fundraising and recruiting capabilities, and the US will continue this mission to ensure that ISIS does not return to its activities.”