An Islamic State flag is seen hung upside down.
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Col Warren also said recent airstrikes had killed an estimated 350 Isis fighters in the city of Ramadi in western Iraq, which was captured by Isis in May.
He told The Associated Press on Wednesday, December 9 the neighborhood is the backbone of the IS group’s structure in Ramadi.
“The United States is prepared to assist the Iraqi Army with additional unique capabilities to help them finish the job, including attack helicopters and accompanying advisers, if circumstances dictate and if requested by Prime Minister Abadi”, Carter said.
Towns on the outskirts of the city – a provincial capital west of Baghdad which was captured by ISIS terrorists earlier this year – are now under the control of Iraqi forces.
Asked about that comment later, Warren said, “Apache helicopters are ready”, if Washington and Baghdad give the go-ahead.
Speaking about Iraqi progress in retaking Ramadi, Defense secretary Ash Carter stated that the method has been “disappointingly sluggish”.
Ismail al-Mahlawi, the head of military operations in Anbar province, says his troops are preparing to push “toward the government complex and the Houz area”, in central Ramadi. Despite this, it took over six months for Iraqi troops to even successfully surround the city, and there is no timetable for retaking it. Abu Saleh was killed in late November, US military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said in a videoconference from Baghdad, calling him “one of the most senior and experienced members” of the group’s financial network.
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Defense Secretary Ash Carter answers a reporter’s question during his joint news conference with Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar, Thursday, Dec. 10, 2015, at the Pentagon.
