The air strikes the administration authorized — only in northern Iraq, mind you — will not be enough

Obama's timid steps on Iraq

by Danielle Pletka 

Thursday's announcement by President Obama regarding air strikes in Iraq had a feeling of inevitability about it. 

But the air strikes the administration authorized — only in northern Iraq, mind you — will not be enough to turn the tide against the Islamic State, which is wholly an outgrowth of the conflict in Syria and the failure of Western powers to intervene in the face of growing Qatari (and other) support for al Qaeda. 

Obama's movement is a lagging indicator of the seriousness of the problem we — yes, we — face in the Middle East. More must be done, or the security of the American people will be the next victim.

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Read more: www.aei-ideas.org


►KAGAN: Moving beyond fear: Addressing the threat of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
►RUBIN: Time to challenge US assumptions about terrorism, security, and Iraq
►BOLTON: Iraq's descent into chaos
►WOLFOWITZ: Too little and too late in Syria
►RUBIN: The US gets the Kurds wrong — again
►THIESSEN: Obama failed to stop the Islamic State when he had the chance
►GOLDBERG: Stand by for slaughter