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ISIS Can 'Muster' Between 20,000 and 31,500 Fighters, CIA Says
By Jim, Jaime Crawford and Chelsea Carter, Sept. 12, 2014, Cnn.com
Washington (CNN) -- A CIA assessment puts the number of ISIS fighters at possibly more than three times the previous estimates.
The terror group that calls itself the Islamic State "can muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria," a CIA spokesman told CNN on Thursday.
Analysts and U.S. officials initially estimated there were as many as 10,000 fighters, including those who were freed from prisons by ISIS, and Sunni loyalists who have joined the fight as the group advanced across Iraq.
"This new total reflects an increase in members because of stronger recruitment since June following battlefield successes and the declaration of a caliphate, greater battlefield activity and additional intelligence," the spokesman said.
The news came a day after President Barack Obama laid out his plan to "dismantle and ultimately destroy" ISIS, including authorizing airstrikes.
Mass executions and videotaped beheadings, including those of two American journalists, have led to the push for a broader counterterrorism mission, including possible airstrikes in civil war-torn Syria.
It's unclear how the ISIS ranks swelled, and whether the increased numbers include recruits from within Iraq.
More than 15,000 foreign fighters, including 2,000 Westerners, have gone to Syria, a CIA source told CNN on Thursday. The fighters come from more than 80 countries, the source said.
By Jim, Jaime Crawford and Chelsea Carter, Sept. 12, 2014, Cnn.com
Washington (CNN) -- A CIA assessment puts the number of ISIS fighters at possibly more than three times the previous estimates.
The terror group that calls itself the Islamic State "can muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria," a CIA spokesman told CNN on Thursday.
Analysts and U.S. officials initially estimated there were as many as 10,000 fighters, including those who were freed from prisons by ISIS, and Sunni loyalists who have joined the fight as the group advanced across Iraq.
"This new total reflects an increase in members because of stronger recruitment since June following battlefield successes and the declaration of a caliphate, greater battlefield activity and additional intelligence," the spokesman said.
The news came a day after President Barack Obama laid out his plan to "dismantle and ultimately destroy" ISIS, including authorizing airstrikes.
Mass executions and videotaped beheadings, including those of two American journalists, have led to the push for a broader counterterrorism mission, including possible airstrikes in civil war-torn Syria.
It's unclear how the ISIS ranks swelled, and whether the increased numbers include recruits from within Iraq.
More than 15,000 foreign fighters, including 2,000 Westerners, have gone to Syria, a CIA source told CNN on Thursday. The fighters come from more than 80 countries, the source said.
Read the full story: www.cnn.com
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