Mosul campaign could take 2 more months, IS to remain a threat - U.S. coalition chief

Record ID: 76197

  • Title: Mosul campaign could take 2 more months, IS to remain a threat - U.S. coalition chief
  • Date: 7th December 2016
  • Summary: AT SEA, (DECEMBER 6, 2016) (REUTERS) SOLDIERS STANDING AT ATTENTION INSIDE HANGAR DECK OF THE FRENCH AIRCRAFT CARRIER CHARLES DE GAULLE/MILITARY PLANES PARKED IN BACKGROUND VARIOUS OF UNITED STATES LIEUTENANT GENERAL STEPHEN TOWNSEND SALUTING THE SOLDIERS
  • Embargoed: 22nd December 2016 15:05
  • Keywords: Iraq Mosul United States Islamic State Charles De Gaulle Townsend Inherent Resolve
  • Location: AT SEA
  • Reuters ID: LVA0015BVXOAV
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The offensive against Islamic State in Mosul could take two more months, and even if the group is defeated there it will still pose a threat to Iraq and the West, the commander of the U.S.-led coalition fighting against it said.
    U.S. Lieutenant-General Stephen Townsend said Iraqi forces had made significant progress since the ultra-hardline militants rampaged through the north of the country in 2014 and then declared a caliphate that also straddled parts of Syria.
    "I think they are going to be working on Mosul for a number of weeks more, maybe a couple of months more probably," Townsend told Reuters in an interview aboard the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle during a visit with senior military officers.
    The U.S.-led Operation Inherent Resolve coalition, which includes military forces from a range of Western and Arab countries, has been bombing Islamic State positions in both Syria and Iraq since 2014. It is now providing air support and some ground assistance to the Iraqi assault on Mosul in Iraq, and working with Kurdish and Arab fighters who have made advances against Islamic State in Syria.
    Townsend said victory in Mosul would not eradicate Islamic State, adding that after Mosul there was still a "tough fight ahead"
    While sooner or later Islamic State fighters would "realize they are going to lose their physical caliphate", he predicted they would adapt their tactics and remain a threat, even after all their territory was reclaimed.
    "They will have to change what they are doing and become more of a virtual caliphate, I think. Devolve into an insurgency over time. In Iraq and Syria," he said.
    Iraq's recent history, in which Islamic State formed from the remnants of al Qaeda fighters subdued during eight years of U.S. occupation, shows that defeating one militant group can lead to the emergence of a graver danger. Townsend said this meant coalition countries would have to keep a presence in Iraq.
    "I don't have a crystal ball. I can't predict the future. I do know that they have shown the ability to come back. Al Qaeda in Iraq gave birth to ISIS, Daesh," said Townsend, using two acronyms to refer to Islamic State, also known as ISIL.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: Audio restrictions: This clip's Audio includes copyrighted material. User is responsible for obtaining additional clearances before publishing the audio contained in this clip.
Register