The strategy has an unstated theme: Destroy the Islamic State now; worry about the future of Syria later. Sunni sheikhs, always opportunistic, seem to be buying into the strategy as their best hope against the Islamic State. The sheikhs described how some members of their tribes around Raqqah are beginning to defect from the Islamic State — and pleading for relief from the barbarous extremists. The United States could try to build the Sunni army it would want, ideally, to capture Raqqah, a Sunni city. U.S. advisers say the Kurdish women are so tough they sometimes go into battle with suicide belts so they won’t be captured by Islamic State fighters who would turn them into sex slaves.

Source: Washington Post May 22, 2016 11:43 UTC