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US still considering no-fly zone for Syria

Two top US officials differ about the prospects for identifying, training and equipping a new moderate Syrian force to oppose the group that calls itself the Islamic State.
Retired U.S. General John Allen, special envoy for building the coalition against Islamic State, speaks to the media during a news conference at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad January 14, 2015.    REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR4LELC

WASHINGTON — The retired Marine general in charge of mobilizing an international coalition against the group that calls itself the Islamic State (IS) says that the United States has not ruled out a no-fly zone or protected corridor in Syria to safeguard the thousands of fighters it intends to train to help defeat the militant group. 

“All those things are under consideration,” John Allen told an audience the evening of March 2 at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank.

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