The Pentagon has a plan for dealing with Islamic State “caliph” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: send in the drones.
Several defense officials spoke to the news network and said that the circumstances that would allow President Obama to order a drone strike are being deliberated.
“He is a person of great interest to us,” a defense official told CNN Wednesday of the terrorist organization’s leader.
For a kill mission to happen, the U.S. must prove that the target poses a threat to the U.S. and its interests, such as the U.S. Embassy staff in Baghdad. Such a strike must be approved by Mr. Obama, CNN reported.
Al-Baghdadi currently has a $10 million bounty on his head from the U.S. government’s Reward for Justice program. The U.S. is conducting roughly 50 reconnaissance missions over Iraq a day, Pentagon press secretary Rear Adm. John Kirby told CNN.
Officials told the network that capturing al-Baghdadi alive would be a difficult task since the U.S. military does not have combat troops on the ground in either Iraq or Syria.
SEE ALSO: Islamic State ‘caliph’ calls on all Muslims to ‘obey’ him during Ramadan prayer service
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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