Obama says no strategy yet on confronting IS in Syria

Publisher Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Publication Date 29 August 2014
Cite as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Obama says no strategy yet on confronting IS in Syria, 29 August 2014, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/542ac6c14.html [accessed 17 September 2023]
DisclaimerThis is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States.

August 29, 2014

A Kurdish Peshmerga fighter takes part in a sweep of the Bakirta village near the town of Makhmur, south of Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, on August 27.A Kurdish Peshmerga fighter takes part in a sweep of the Bakirta village near the town of Makhmur, south of Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, on August 27.

U.S. President Barack Obama has said the United States has not yet developed a strategy for confronting the Islamic State (IS) in Syria.

Speaking to reporters in Washington on August 28, Obama said a range of options was being considered.

Obama said he would dispatch Secretary of State John Kerry to the Middle East soon to discuss the matter with regional partners.

Obama said it was time for Middle Eastern states to "stop being ambivalent" about the aims of extremist groups like the Islamic State.

The United States is already striking militant targets in Iraq, and administration officials have said the president was considering similar action in neighboring Syria.

Obama spoke shortly before convening a meeting of his national security advisers to discuss a range of Pentagon options for confronting the Islamic State group.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AP

Link to original story on RFE/RL website

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