Pentagon Walks Back Promise to Attack ISIS Capital ASAP

Defense Secretary Ash Carter’s claim last week that the assault on Raqqa, the capital of the so-called Islamic State, was “within weeks” was a surprise to the commanders planning the war, who believe local troops will not enter the city for months, three defense officials told The Daily Beast.

One official told The Daily Beast the attack on the ISIS capital could be six months away.

“The broader question of retaking Raqqa and who does that is still open and we’re gonna continue to discuss that with all of our coalition partners,” Navy Capt. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, explained to reporters Wednesday.

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“I think that any administration in the last few months in office is going to try to shape their legacy and wrap up things they don’t want to leave to the next administration. It could be that Carter’s statement is linked to that desire,” Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a senior fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

But there is a risk with rushing such a campaign, even one that, if successful, would likely mark the demise of the so-called caliphate.

“The hastier your desire to enter, the uglier your allied forces will be,” Gartenstein-Ross explained.

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