CIA: Islamic State group has up to 31,500 fighters

Published September 11, 2014 9:42pm ET



WASHINGTON (AP) — A CIA spokesman says a new intelligence assessment estimates that the Islamic State group can muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria, up from a previous figure of 10,000.

The new assessment is based on a review of intelligence reports from May to August. It is larger than the 20,000 figure being used by many outside experts.

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