Up to 1,000 U.S. troops will be involved in training and equipping 1,200 Syrian rebels to fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, the Pentagon said Tuesday.
The first segment of U.S. 100 troops are already doing advance work at an undisclosed location, the Pentagon said.
The advance team will set up training facilities for vetted Syrian rebels who would be provided vehicles, radios, military training and follow-on support, Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said. Follow-on forces are expected to be in place in late March or April and would include security forces and trainers, Kirby said.
“The training that they are going to be receiving [includes] basic military skills and organizational abilities,” Kirby said, “So they can go back and defend their cities and go on the offensive eventually against [the Islamic State] in Syria.”
Kirby did not rule out the possibility that the trained forces may ultimately be used in conjunction with U.S. airstrikes to assist them in identifying Islamic State targets.
The direct aid and training raised the question as to whether the U.S. may be risking providing military weapons to people who would strike against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, potentially throwing the U.S. into the larger internal struggle between Syria’s government and rebels.
Kirby said an intense vetting process is hedging against that.
“The fight is against ISIL, and ISIL only,” Kirby said, using the other name frequently used to identify the Islamic State.
The 1,200 Syrians who have been identified were initially vetted by the staff of Maj. Gen. Michael Nagata, commander of American Special Operations forces in the Middle East and U.S. intelligence agencies.
The fighters will be continually reassessed and re-vetted “individual by individual,” Kirby said, in precautions to make sure they are not arming and equipping fighters who may incite violence against the U.S.
“We’ve learned a lot of lessons in blood,” Kirby said, referring to the many attacks in which U.S. trainers or troops have been killed by Iraqi or Afghan forces they trained.
