ARAB ALLIES PLEDGE GROUND TROOPS TO BATTLE ISIL

U.S. Defence Secretary Ashton Carter has secured renewed pledges of more airstrikes and special operations forces from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the fight against ISIL, further raising the Arab profile in the U.S.-led effort.

The two countries promised to restart now-stalled air campaigns against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, according to Carter, and will be sending special operations forces into Syria to assist local fighters on the ground at the tactical level. Carter would not specify when the extra troops would arrive, and the Arab allies did not specify any numbers.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are among the leading Arab backers of rebel forces seeking to topple the government of Syrian President Bashar Assad, whose forces have made recent gains with aid from Russian airstrikes. It was not clear whether their pledge to boost their roles in the ISIL fight will also include parallel assistance to Syrian opposition groups.