Committee on Armed Services United State

United States Strategy and Military Operations to Counter the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and United States Policy Toward Iraq and Syria Committee on Armed Services United State

The black flags of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) are now flying over yet another major Iraqi city, Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's Anbar Province, and reports overnight suggest that ISIL now controls the Syrian city of Palmyra, as well. The fall of Ramadi and capture by ISIL of American-supplied military equipment is another setback for the United States and further undermines our credibility as a reliable strategic partner in the region. And yet, the Obama administration seems unwilling or unable to grasp the strategic significance. As ISIL terrorists ransacked Ramadi-the Pentagon's news page ran a story with the headline, "Strategy to Defeat ISIL is Working." Secretary of State John Kerry said Ramadi was a mere "target of opportunity." When a review should have been well underway to correct an incoherent strategy that is woefully under-resourced, the White House Press Secretary, Josh Ernst, said, "Are we going to light our hair on fire every time there's a setback?" The disaster of Ramadi should lead to a complete overhaul of U. S. Strategy. The President has stated, "Our goal is degrading and ultimately destroying ISIL," but neither strategy nor resources support this goal.