http://cnsnews.com/news/article/susan-jones/kerry-united-states-acting-and-leading-iraqKerry: 'The United States Is Acting and Leading' in Iraq
August 8, 2014 - 5:41 AM
By Susan Jones
(CNSNews.com) - Secretary of State John Kerry hailed President Obama for acting "expeditiously and appropriately" in authorizing airstrikes on ISIS/ISIL terrorists in Iraq.
"The United States is acting and leading, and the world cannot sit by and watch innocents die," Kerry said in a statement issued Thursday night, shortly after Obama set three specific conditions for striking ISIS/ISIL terrorists.
"ISIL’s campaign of terror against the innocent, including Yezedi and Christian minorities, and its grotesque and targeted acts of violence bear all the warning signs and hallmarks of genocide. For anyone who needed a wake-up call, this is it," Kerry said.
"ISIL is fighting to divide and destroy Iraq – and ISIL is offering nothing to anyone except chaos, nihilism, and ruthless thuggery. With a gut-wrenching humanitarian crisis unfolding, and the rolls of the starving and sick growing daily, there’s not a minute to waste. The United States is acting and leading, and the world cannot sit by and watch innocents die.
Kerry said the Obama administration will continue to coordinate with its allies in the region as well as the international community to help Iraqis "confront ISIL’s brutal ideology, which poses a severe threat to Iraq, the region, and the United States."
In concluding, Kerry offered the assurance that "I will remain closely engaged with Ambassador Beecroft, Deputy Assistant Secretary McGurk, and our team on the ground as we work to ensure that our personnel in Erbil, Baghdad, and across Iraq are secure."
Obama acting 'expeditiously'?
As CNSNews.com previously reported, the Islamic terrorists intent on establishing their own state stretching from Syria to Iraq warned back in January that they intended to march on Baghdad and move into "direct confrontation" with the United States.
When the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing on February 5 on al Qaida’s resurgence in Iraq, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iran and Iraq Brett McGurk presented written testimony explaining the agenda of ISIS/ISIL and discussed Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's audio message to Americans.
“Our last message is to the Americans. Soon we will be in direct confrontation, and the sons of Islam have prepared for such a day,” Baghdadi said. “So watch, for we are with you, watching.”
“We take such threats seriously and through cooperation with this committee and the Congress, we intend to help the Iraqis in their efforts to defeat ISIL over long term,” McGurk told the committee in his spoken testimony.