Jul. 07, 2015 Progress made in fight against ISIS, but U.S. and allies still have long battle ahead POOL/GETTY

Jul. 07, 2015

Progress made in fight against ISIS, but U.S. and allies still have long battle ahead

POOL/GETTY IMAGES

اقتباس :: President Obama discusses the fight against ISIS during a meeting with his national security team at the Pentagon on Monday.
The U.S. and its allies are making progress in the fight against ISIS — but it will be a long and bitter battle, President Obama said Monday.
After meeting with military leaders at the Pentagon, the President said the U.S. is boosting its efforts to train and equip the “moderate opposition” in Syria.
Since last August, air strikes by the U.S. and allies have “eliminated thousands of fighters, including senior commanders,” he said.
But the President called ISIS “opportunistic” and “nimble.”
He said the U.S. will keep up efforts to discredit the group and counter its use of the Internet to recruit suppporters.
“This larger battle for hearts and minds is going to be a generational struggle,” Obama said.
Obama did not elaborate on how the U.S. will assist moderate Syrians, a group many experts say is dwarfed by radical Islamic fighters.
The U.S. is also ramping up training of Iraqi forces, Obama said.
The fall of Ramadi, the capital of the mainly Sunni western Anbar province, galvanized the Iraqi government and increased Sunni volunteers, he said.

nydailynews.com

BY DAN FRIEDMAN
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS