(Photo: Youssef Rabih Youssef, EPA/EFE)The rise of the Islamic State was spectacular and terrifying. A commitment of 5,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and up to 1,400 in Syria rolled back a terror state at a cost of 31 Americans killed in action. President Obama, though slow to recognize the Islamic State threat, deserves credit for launching the effort to roll back ISIS. In the wake of recent victories, however, a bewildering array of challenges remains:Some 6,500 Islamic State fighters still hold out along the Euphrates River and the Iraq/Syrian border, even as affiliates persist in Afghanistan, West Africa, Libya and the Philippines. The threat from Islamic State-inspired "lone wolf" attacks continues, as illustrated by the mass shootings in San Bernardino, Calif., and Orlando.

Source: Libya Today October 22, 2017 21:11 UTC