Obama’s New Open-ended War in Syria

In spite of Neo-Con urging, President George W. Bush never attacked Syria  —  Obama takes the U.S. Middle East War into Syrian territory along with a hand full of Arab allies, and apparently with Syria’s OK

The Obama Doctrine of using drones armed with Hellfire missiles over various sovereign nations has morfed into deep strikes into Syria against ISIL (ISIS) AND OTHER TARGETS by sea launched Tomahawk cruise missiles, sea based FA-18 Super Hornets and land-based F-22 Raptors  — The Pentagon says  this level of hostilities is open-ended and might go on for years....

According to the Reuters News Service, “ The United States and its Arab allies bombed Syria for the first time on Tuesday, killing scores of Islamic State fighters and members of a separate al Qaeda-linked group, opening a new front against militants by joining Syria's three-year-old civil war...   The United States and its Arab allies bombed Syria for the first time on Tuesday, killing scores of Islamic State fighters and members of a separate al Qaeda-linked group, opening a new front against militants by joining Syria's three-year-old civil war....” ( See “U.S. and Arab allies launch first strikes on fighters in Syria” by Phil Stewart & Tom Perry, 9/23/14, Reuters/ Washington/ Beirut [http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/23/us-syria-crisis-usa-strikes-idUSKCN0HI03A20140923]).

In a sign of how the Islamic State's (ISIL/ISIS) rise has blurred conflict lines, the Syrian government said Washington had informed it hours before the strikes in a letter from Secretary of State John Kerry sent through his Iraqi counterpart.

The Pentagon said the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power, had informed Syria's envoy in advance but there had been no coordination and no communication between the two countries' armed forces. Only a year ago Washington was on the verge of bombing the Syrian government over the use of chemical weapons, before Obama canceled the strikes at the last minute. Now, Syrian state TV is saying the air strikes did not amount to an act of aggression because the Syrian government had been notified. This does not mean Syria is part of the joint operations or a part of the alliance, however ISIL/ISIS  is viewed as a common enemy.

“Lt. Gen. William Mayville, director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff [J-3], said Monday night's air strikes in Syria ‘are the beginning of a credible and sustainable, persistent campaign to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL’... Although he refused to comment on future operations, Mayville told reporters, ‘You are seeing the beginnings of a sustained campaign, and strikes like this in the future can be expected....’” (See “Pentagon: U.S. Air Strikes in Syria Are 'Beginning of a...Sustainable, Persistent Campaign'” by Susan Jones, 9/23/14, [http://cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-jones/pentagon-us-air-strikes-syria-are-beginning-asustainable-persistent]). General Mayville also said that the “operational pace, the tempo of this thing, will be dictated by the facts on the ground...  It would be difficult for me today to kind of lay out some sort of very lockstep process. It's driven by the opportunities that we see.”

Earlier, Rear Admiral John Kirby, a U.S. Defense Department spokesman, told reporters, “I can tell you that last night's strikes were only the beginning."  Kirby also said the U.S. military's "immediate tasks" are to "continue the degradation of ISIL in Syria and Iraq; to build and strengthen regional partners and to build a regional coalition; to assist in placing Iraqi Security Forces and (Kurdish) Pershmerga forces on the offensive; to support the broader diplomatic efforts in the region; to implement a Syrian train-and-equip program; and to continue to work with Iraqi Security Forces and ministers."

OBAMA “STRATEGY” REMAINS CONTROVERSIAL

The president’s recent expressions of a strategy vis a vis ISIL/ISIS did not garner broad support either by military professionals or the American people. It remains to be seen if the Commander in Chief and his top generals and admirals at the Pentagon are on the same page when it comes to the newly opened air offensive in Iraq and Syria. So far, on day one, it seems that they are  – sort of....

“President Barack Obama vowed more strikes against extremists in Syria on Tuesday after U.S. forces carried out separate air raids targeting Islamic State militants and an al Qaeda affiliate that Washington said was plotting attacks on America and Europe. ***   "We will not tolerate safe havens for terrorists who threaten our people," Obama said as he left the White House to travel to the United Nations in New York, where he will meet officials from Arab nations that joined in the strikes against the Islamic State group. ***   The White House said U.S. forces made separate strikes on its own against the Khorasan group, an al Qaeda affiliate, in order to disrupt planning for imminent attacks on the west....” (See “Obama vows continued air strikes against extremists in Syria” by Roberta Rampton & Phil Stewart, 9/23/14, Reuters News Service [http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/23/us-syria-crisis-usa-idUSKCN0HI20820140923]).