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Militants with the Islamic State with a machine gun-fitted pickup truck hold positions in Kobani, Syria, during intensified fighting with Syrian Kurds. The Pentagon predicted that more towns in Syria and Iraq will fall to the terrorist group in the coming weeks. (Associated Press)

Pentagon sees Baghdad at risk of Islamic State takeover, expects Kobani to fall

By Rowan Scarborough - The Washington Times

FILE - In this Oct. 6, 2014 file photo, smoke rises after a shell lands in Kobani in Syria as fighting intensifies between Syrian Kurds and the militants of Islamic State group, as seen from the outskirts of Suruc, at the Turkey-Syria border. After two months, the U.S.-led aerial campaign in Iraq has so far hardly dented the core of the Islamic State group’s territory. The extremists’ grip on major cities across Iraq and neighboring Syria remains unquestioned. The campaign has brought some gains, with Kurdish fighters taking back towns on the fringes of the Islamic State group’s territory. But those successes only underline a major weakness: Besides the Iraqi Kurds, there are no forces on the ground ready to capitalize on the airstrikes. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)

ANALYSIS: U.S.-led airstrikes produce few gains

By VIVIAN SALAMA - Associated Press

The Turkish military is fortifying its border as fighting intensifies between Syrian Kurds and the Islamic State group in Kobani, which has been under attack for weeks. (Associated Press)

Islamic State withstands bombing campaign, plots Baghdad invasion

By Rowan Scarborough - The Washington Times

Marine Gen. John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, listens March 26, 2012, during a news conference at the Pentagon. (Associated Press)

U.S. pushing for new ‘Sunni Awakening’ in Iraq

By Guy Taylor - The Washington Times

FILE - This Sept. 14, 2012, file photo shows carry teams at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. moving flag draped transfer cases during the Transfer of Remains Ceremony of the four Americans killed in an attack on a diplomatic outpost and CIA annex Benghazi, Libya. The testimony of nine military officers severely undermines claims by Republican lawmakers that a &#8220;stand-down order&#8221; held back military assets who could have those killed in the attack. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)

GALLAGHER: Foreshadowing Benghazi in Iraq in 2004

By Frank Gallagher

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce, R-Calif., speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 18, 2014, during a House Foreign Affairs committee hearing. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) ** FILE **

Ed Royce: Circumvent Baghdad if necessary to arm Kurds, religious minorities

By David Sherfinski - The Washington Times

In this photo released by an official website of the Iranian supreme leader's office, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Office of the Supreme Leader) ** FILE **

LOPEZ: Obama pledges additional support for Iranian puppet regimes

By Clare Lopez

President Obama addresses the nation from the Cross Hall in the White House in Washington. (Associated Press)

Obama: Offensive against Islamic State ‘will be different’ from Iraq, Afghanistan

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

FILE - This file image posted on a militant website on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2014, which is consistent with AP reporting, shows a convoy of vehicles and fighters from the al-Qaida linked Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters in Iraq's Anbar Province. The Islamic State group holds roughly a third of Iraq and Syria, including several strategically important cities like Fallujah and Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria. It rules over a population of several million people with its strict interpretation of Islamic law. (AP Photo via militant website, File)

Official: Iraqi troop deployment spurred in part by drone intel of forces around Baghdad

By Maggie Ybarra - The Washington Times

White House press secretary Josh Earnest gestures during the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, Monday, Aug. 25, 2014, where he took questions on ISIS, Iraq, and Syria. He also received congratulations for his newborn baby. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

Obama sends another 350 troops to Iraq

By Ben Wolfgang - The Washington Times

This undated image posted on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2014 by the Raqqa Media Center, a Syrian opposition group, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting, shows a fighter from the Islamic State group, armed with a knife and an automatic weapon, next to captured Syrian army soldiers and officers, following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria. As the U.S. strikes Islamic State militant targets in Iraq, extremists of the same group are unhindered in their growth across the border in Syria, capturing new territory and becoming bolder by the day. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)

Sources: US considering new relief mission in Iraq

By ROBERT BURNS - Associated Press

GRAZIANO: Letting Kurdistan’s freedom slip into repression’s grasp

By Joe Graziano

Iraqi parliament speaker, Salim al-Jabouri, a Sunni, speaks about the Friday attack on the Musab bin Omair Mosque, which killed more than 60 people and escalated sectarian tensions, during a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, Aug. 23, 2014. Al-Jabouri said an investigation is underway into the attack on the Sunni mosque in Imam Wais village, northeast of Baghdad. If the attack proves to have been carried out by Shiite militiamen it would deal a major blow to prime minister-designate Haider al-Abadi efforts to reach out to the country's Sunni minority, whose grievances are seen as fueling the Islamic State insurgency. (AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

Baghdad bomber hits Interior Ministry, kills 11 people

Associated Press

FILE - This Aug. 20, 2014 file photo shows Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey speaking at Madison Square Garden in New York. During a Pentagon briefing Thursday, Dempsey said it's possible to contain the Islamic State militants, but it can't be done permanently without going after the group in Syria. Speaking to reporters with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Dempsey said he wasn't predicting U.S. airstrikes in Syria, but said the problem must be addressed diplomatically, politically and militarily by America and its regional partners. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

Obama faces tough options in Iraq and Syria

By ROBERT BURNS - Associated Press

THIS CORRECTs THE TYPE OF WARPLANE IS AN EA-6B -- An EA-6B coming from Iraq lands on the flight deck of the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush on Sunday, Aug. 10, 2014 in the Persian Gulf. Aircrafts aboard the George H.W. Bush are flying missions over Iraq after U.S. President Barack Obama authorized airstrikes against Islamic militants and food drops for Iraqis trapped by the fighters. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali)

US official: More airstrikes in Iraq

Associated Press

Mosul Dam Airstrike Illustration by Greg Groesch/The Washington Times

LOPEZ: Islam’s dilemma over the Islamic State

By Clare M. Lopez

New Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Ibadi, a Shiite, has gotten votes of confidence from American and Iranian leaders about building a unity government in Baghdad. (associated press)

Despite challenges, optimism high for Shiite al-Ibadi

By Ammar Karim and Jennifer Collins — Special to The Washington Times

FILE - In this Friday, March 26, 2010 file photo, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki speaks to the press in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Nouri al-Maliki has given up his post as prime minister to Haider al-Abadi, state television reported Thursday, Aug. 14, 2014 &#8212; a move that could end a political deadlock that plunged Baghdad into uncertainty as the country fights a Sunni militant insurgency. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban, File)

Iraq’s Nouri al-Maliki resigns as prime minister amid chaos

By Guy Taylor and Dave Boyer - The Washington Times

U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel speaks during a press conference with Australia's Defense Minister David Johnston in Sydney, Australia, Monday, Aug. 11, 2014. Hagel is in Australia along with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry for talks with government officials as part of the annual Australia-United States Ministerial talks.(AP Photo/Rob Griffith, Pool)

Obama puts 130 ground troops in Iraq

By Dave Boyer - The Washington Times