Top general: U.S. needs to keep IS down

‘Vigilant offensive’ only way to hold on to gains

WASHINGTON — The top commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, Gen. Joseph Votel, told a Senate committee on Tuesday that of the 34,000 square miles of territory that the Islamic State group once held, it now controls less than 20 square miles. That figure includes a large swath of desert around Syria villages IS controls.

“It is important to understand that even though this territory has been reclaimed, the fight against ISIS and violent extremists is not over and our mission has not changed,” Votel, commander of U.S. Central Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee.

“The coalition’s hard-won battlefield gains can only be secured by maintaining a vigilant offensive against the now largely dispersed and disaggregated ISIS that retains leaders, fighters, facilitators, resources and the profane ideology that fuels their efforts.”

Votel said there are now between 1,000 and 1,500 IS fighters in the small area they still control in the southern part of the Euphrates River Valley near the Iraqi border. The remainder, he said, have “dispersed” and “gone to ground,” suggesting they retain the potential to return.

President Donald Trump’s decision to leave Syria, which he initially said would be rapid but later slowed down, shocked U.S. allies and led to the resignations of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and the top envoy to the anti-is coalition, Brett Mcgurk.

Votel was asked at Tuesday’s hearing whether his advice about a Syria withdrawal was sought before Trump announced his decision.

“I was not consulted,” the general said.

The withdrawal will fulfill Trump’s goal of bringing troops home from Syria, but military leaders have pushed back for months, arguing that IS remains a threat and could regroup. U.S. policy has been to keep troops in place until the extremists are eradicated.