US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter on Tuesday admitted that the country has only vetted 60 Syrians to train as fighters against Daesh (ISIS), far lower than the
An American fighter who joined Kurdish forces says he has the answer.
Jordan Matson, a soldier in the People's Protection Units (YPG), posted on his Facebook page saying he had made a request with US Senator John McCain's Office to provide a solution to the fighting shortage.
McCain, a former presidential candidate, chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee and heavily criticized President Barack Obama's $500 million training program. He blamed the administration for so far losing in its fight against Daesh and said the training program was a big part of the strategy against the extremists.
The challenge to Matson's plan? The YPG is regarded as an entity of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist organization by the US. Finding "moderate" rebels with the help of Kurdish fighters might not look so good.
Though that hasn’t stopped the US from coordinating with Kurdish forces in its airstrikes against Daesh.
By Hayat Norimine
