Special operations troops say they should be doing more in the war against the Islamic State group, complaining of strict rules of engagement and White House limits on troop numbers in Iraq and Syria.
Two years after the U.S. went to war, American commandos in relatively small numbers are in at least five countries under Islamic State assault: Syria, Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan and Yemen.
But their role is mostly to train, advise and assist — a limitation that keeps them at arm’s length when local allies go into battle. Overall, the number of deployed American special operations personnel is about a third less today than it was during the troop surges for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. – READ MORE
