Obama ordering 275 U.S. troops to Iraq to protect U.S. personnel
Antiwar groups hold a demonstration against U.S. military intervention in Iraq in front of the White House on June 16. (Nicholas Kamm / AFP/ Getty Images)
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama notified Congress Monday that he is sending 275 U.S. military personnel to Iraq to provide support and security for U.S. personnel and the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, the Los Angeles Times reported.
According to the newspaper, Obama also is considering sending 100 or fewer special operations troops to Iraq to advise its armed forces as it battles Sunni Muslim insurgents. It was unclear whether they would be among the 275 military personnel or in addition to them.
The special operations troops, according to the Times, would include coordinating U.S. airstrikes on militant positions in Iraq, sharing intelligence with Iraqi security forces and giving Iraqi commanders tactical advice.
Militants from the Islamic State in Iraq (ISIS) and Syria began an offensive that has seen vast swaths of northern Iraq fall out of government hands.