The U.S. ground commander in Iraq says the pace of airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Iraq has increased, but not because he has any new orders from the Trump Pentagon.
“Our mission has not changed, our orders have not changed,” Army Maj. Gen. Joseph Martin told Pentagon reporters Wednesday in a live briefing from Baghdad.
Martin said the number and intensity of the airstrikes directed against Islamic State fighters in Mosul rose dramatically at the end of December, when Iraqi forces adjusted tactics and began better synchronizing their attack.
That flushed out many of the Islamic State fighters, and presented more targets of opportunity.
“The combination of their ground maneuver created a condition where the enemy had to react to contact from multiple directions, and in doing so, revealed vulnerabilities that enabled us to target the enemy forces at a significantly higher rate than we had done before,” Martin said.
“Our mission has not changed,” he added. “I can’t speculate on what may come forward in the future, but currently, our mission has not changed.”
Martin said Iraqi forces have proven their mettle in liberating the eastern half of Mosul.
“The Iraqis have made significant progress in retaking a city about the size of Philadelphia, in a fight that would be difficult for any army to execute,” Martin said. “It’s the hardest door-to-door fighting the world has seen in recent history.”
