Cold War-era B-52 bombers -- best known for flying nuclear-armed patrols and carpet- bombing in Vietnam -- have dropped almost 700 munitions on Islamic State targets since beginning operations in April over territory the group claims, according to the U.S. Air Force’s chief of staff. - Bloomberg
Seven months into its extended deployment, the aircraft carrier Harry S. Truman has hit 2,000 sorties in missions against the Islamic State group, surpassing all other flattops that have launched strikes in the mounting war against ISIS over the past two years. – Military Times
A Muslim witness said at a Senate hearing Tuesday that he has "no problem" calling the Islamic State a radical Islamic terrorist organization, even though the Obama administration has made a point of avoiding that term. – Washington Examiner
President Barack Obama and some administration officials have hailed recent military gains against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, but other U.S. officials and outside experts warn that the U.S.-backed air and ground campaign is far from eradicating the radical Islamic group, and could even backfire. - Reuters
Dennis Ross writes: Our problem in getting Sunnis to take on this role is that our priority in Syria and Iraq is ISIL -- while Iran, the Shiite militias and Syrian President Bashar Assad are the Sunni preoccupations. They see a predatory Iran using Shiite militias to dominate the region and fear we are ready to acquiesce in their dominance. Until we can show we take the Iranian threat seriously, and will work with our Sunni partners to raise the cost to Iran of its destabilizing actions, the Sunnis will be unlikely to play the role that only they can against ISIL – USA Today