Obama Announces Authorization to Train Syrian Opposition

President Obama announced on September 18 that the United States Congress had moved to authorize the training of Syrian opposition forces to help combat Islamic State militants in the region. Speaking at the state dining room of the White House, the president said that the US will train the opposition in Syria and equip them to help “push back” IS.

“These Syrian opposition forces are fighting both the brutality of ISIL terrorists and the tyranny of the Assad regime. We had already ramped up our assistance, including military assistance, to the Syrian opposition,” Obama said. “With this new effort, we’ll provide training and equipment to help them grow stronger and take on ISIL terrorists inside Syria. This program will be hosted outside of Syria, in partnership with Arab countries, and it will be matched by our increasing support for Iraqi government and Kurdish forces in Iraq.”

The president’s full remarks can be found here. Credit: The White House