Dempsey: US needs 15,000 militants in Syria

Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the United States needs to arm and train 15,000 “moderate” militants to dislodge the ISIL terrorist group in Syria.

His comments came a week after Congress overwhelmingly approved a plan for the Pentagon to begin arming and equipping 5,000 militants to fight both ISIL and the Syrian government.

Lawmakers still must consider a White House request for $500 million for the arm-and-equip program.

“Five thousand has never been the end state,” Dempsey told reporters Friday. “Twelve to 15,000 is what we believe they would need to recapture lost territory in eastern Syria."

The top military commander refused to retreat from his earlier statement that he might recommend boots on the ground in combat against ISIL. “There’s no airpower alone solution to ISIL either in Iraq or in Syria.”

President Barack Obama has authorized airstrikes against ISIL targets in Iraq and Syria, but has repeatedly ruled out American boots on the ground in a combat role.

The US and its allies have been continuously bombing ISIL targets in northeastern Syria since Tuesday.

Fighter aircraft from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have taken part in the air campaign.

Meanwhile,  the Pentagon is indicating that it may decide to prevent the Syrian military from targeting anti-government militants in the same region.

The Pentagon leadership said Friday it was considering the possibility of imposing a no-fly zone over northeastern Syria.