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Pentagon outlines its '3Rs' Islamic State strategy

Democrats and Republicans alike have misgivings about the Pentagon's push for a greater US role in Iraq and Syria.
United States Secretary of Defense Ash Carter prepares to testify at a Senate Armed Forces Committee hearing on "United States Strategy in the Middle East" in Washington October 27, 2015. REUTERS/Gary Cameron     - RTX1TGBO

The Pentagon's push for a beefed-up US role in the war against the Islamic State (IS) landed with a thud on Capitol Hill on Oct. 27. 

Defense Secretary Ash Carter told lawmakers on the Senate Armed Services Committee that military officials are considering a strategy of "3 Rs" focusing on Raqqa, Ramadi and raids in their bid to put the Islamist group on the back foot. Carter said the strategy includes a stepped-up bombing campaign as well as more special forces missions that will put US troops in harm's way.

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