McCain & Graham Call For Massive Troop Deployment In Syria And Iraq

On Sunday US warhawks John McCain and Lindsey Graham called for Washington to nearly triple the US military force levels in Iraq to 10,000, and send an equal number of troops to Syria to ‘counter’ ISIS terrorists in both countries. McCain and Graham also criticized President Barack Obama’s Daesh strategy, which relies on airstrikes and modest support to what Washington deems as ‘moderate’ militants in Syria, stressing the need for greater US in the Middle East conflicts. The senators met earlier with Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi who they said had welcomed the idea of more US troops. However, Iraqi government spokesman Saad Hadithi denied the claim, saying that the PM had not requested US combat troops on the ground but rather asked for more arms and advisers to increase air support for Iraqi forces.