Pentagon considers ‘sending ground troops to Syria’

President Trump has asked officials to speed up the fight against ISIS

The Pentagon is reportedly considering sending conventional ground troops into northern Syria for the first time to accelerate the fight against Isis.

Only small teams of US special operation forces are currently authorised in the country and the decision to send ground troops would be in the hands of President Trump, who recently ordered his defence secretary, James Mattis, to draft a new proposal to fight the terror network within 30 days.

“It’s possible that you may see conventional forces hit the ground in Syria for some period of time,” a leading TV Channel quoted a defence official. US officials told the network that the idea is merely a “point of discussion” rather than a formal proposal.

There are currently 5,262 US troops allowed in Iraq with hundreds of others who are temporarily assigned to the country and not counted under the ceiling, reported a TV channel from US.

Defense Secretary Mattis previously said at his confirmation hearings that he separate himself from the Obama administration’s policies to fight jihadists in Syria and Iraq. “I think it’s getting there as rapidly as possible,” he said, “where it would be a more accelerated campaign.”