Pentagon Memo: It Would Take 75,000 Ground Troops To Secure Syria's Chemical Weapons Facilities

These Syrian troops, shown in a February 2012 CNN broadcast, shout 'Allahu Akbar' as they raise their rifles skyward. U.S. forces entering the country would have to fight them for control of chemical weapons sites

Revealed: Pentagon Knew In 2012 That It Would Take 75,000 GROUND TROOPS To Secure Syria's Chemical Weapons Facilities -- Daily Mail

Securing Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles and the facilities that produced them would likely require the U.S. to send more than 75,000 ground troops into the Middle Eastern country, MailOnline learned Wednesday.

That estimate comes from a secret memorandum the U.S. Department of Defense prepared for President Obama in early 2012.

U.S. Central Command arrived at the figure of 75,000 ground troops as part of a written series of military options for dealing with Bashar al-Assad more than 18 months ago, long before the U.S. confirmed internally that the Syrian dictator was using the weapons against rebel factions within his borders.

'The report exists, and it was prepared at the request of the National Security Advisor's staff,' a Department of Defense official with knowledge of the inquiry told MailOnline Wednesday on condition of anonymity.

'The report exists, and it was prepared at the request of the National Security Advisor's staff,' a Department of Defense official with knowledge of the inquiry told MailOnline Wednesday on condition of anonymity.

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My Comment: I suspect that this number is a "low number" .... especially if Al Qaeda affiliated groups and many Syrians decide that such weapons should not be in the hands of US forces.