Top U.S officials have reportedly dubbed the militant group, Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Al Qaeda in its doctrine and ambition and one that has grown into a threat that is worse than Al Qaeda.
According to The Hill, McGurk, a deputy assistant secretary of State, has said that the militant outfit has now grown into a full blown army and poses a greater threat to the U.S. interests.
Elissa Slotkin, acting principal deputy undersecretary of Defense for policy, added that the outfit has also threatened to come after the U.S. President Barack Obama.
The report quoted Tom Ridge, former Homeland Security Secretary, as conceding that the threat has been calling for attention for a very long time and it is growing serious day by day as the ISIS now consists of fighters from the European nations as well. These nations are visa waiver countries which means that they can shave their beards and look like normal, responsible civilians and walk into the U.S. without a visa.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) on the other hand conceded that the threat was ignored for a very long time even after Iraq requested the U.S. to carry out drone strikes as early as August 2013.
The Wednesday meeting saw the U.S officials listing steps to counter the ISIS which included persuading the neighboring nations in the region to close their borders to stop the spread of the militant outfit and allowing the U.S. to train local Iraqi security forces and centrist Syrian groups.
However, it is unclear if any military response is being planned by the U.S to diffuse the threat posed by ISIS or not.
The militant group has captured large swathes of territory in both Syria and Iraq.
