The U.S. military is asking the White House to send up to 500 troops to Iraq as part of a campaign to claim the country from the Islamic State, according to officials.
Officials reported the deployment, if given approval, would support coalition and local forces planning to capture the northern city of Mosul from the Islamic State in a long-delayed fight predicted to begin as early as mid-October, according to the Wall Street Journal. President Obama already sent 400 troops to Iraq in early September in preparation for the mission.
Currently, there are 4,400 American personnel officially stationed in Iraq and 1,500 additional soldiers that are not considered part of the Iraq force at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad or on temporary assignment. In total, the number of American military men could reach as high as 6,400 in Iraq.
Tensions in the region are heating up as forces prepare the large mission to capture the Islamic State stronghold in Mosul. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced during the United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York that forces located in Shirqat, near Baghdad, began an operation Tuesday to destroy supply lines into the city.
Obama has not been presented with a plan for the operation, according to American officials. If the additional 500 American troops are deployed, the strict “advise and assist” mission requirements means they will not be on the front lines.
