Flow of Fighters to Iraq, Syria to Join Islamic State Has Slowed, U.S. Says
The number of foreign fighters arriving in Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State has declined to about 200 a month from as many as 2,000 a month a year ago, a top commander in the U.S.-led campaign against the extremist group said Tuesday. U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Peter E. Gersten, Deputy Commander for […]Paul Sonne writes for The Wall Street Journal:
The number of foreign fighters arriving in Iraq and Syria to join Islamic State has declined to about 200 a month from as many as 2,000 a month a year ago, a top commander in the U.S.-led campaign against the extremist group said Tuesday.
U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Peter E. Gersten, Deputy Commander for Operations and Intelligence for the U.S.-led campaign, attributed the drop to progress by coalition forces and their partners on the battlefield, which he also credited for driving out some combatants who were already there. A year ago, the U.S. estimated that 1,500 to 2,000 fighters a month were flocking to the fight from the Middle East and Europe.
