How U.S. Advisers Are Playing A Critical Role In The War Against The Islamic State In Iraq

American army personnel gather at the University of Mosul during a battle with Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, January 18, 2017. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed/File Photo

Reuters: Iraq counts on U.S. advisers, mostly out of sight, in war on Islamic State

When Iraqi forces faced a fierce Islamic State counter-attack last month at a hospital in Mosul they had stormed without enough troops to hold it, U.S. advisers behind the front lines shepherded them to safety.

And as they punched through the city's northern limits a few weeks later, it was again the Americans who counseled them how best to avoid roadside bombs and head off Islamic State suicide car bombers.

Washington, leading an international coalition against the jihadists in Iraq and Syria, has launched thousands of air strikes over the past 2-1/2 years and provided aerial surveillance vital to pushing them back.

But American guidance to Iraqi counterparts all the way up to the commander-in-chief has taken on greater significance in the Mosul campaign, which entered its fourth month this week, as advisers integrated with the Iraqis to an unprecedented level for conventional U.S. forces.

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Previous Post: Is The Obama Doctrine Working In The War Against The Islamic State? (January 15, 2017).

WNU Editor: It is not only the U.S. that is involved in assisting the Iraqi Army in the war against the Islamic State .... there are numerous other countries (Canada, EU/NATO countries, etc.).... including countries like Iran.