Pentagon Says Islamic State ‘Caliphate’ Defeat Is Near

By Lisa Ferdinando

The defeat of the “caliphate” that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria claimed in Syria is near, top Defense Department officials said at the Pentagon Thursday.

“A lot of great work’s been done in Syria,” Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the director of Joint Staff, said.

Speaking at a news conference alongside chief Pentagon spokesperson Dana W. White, McKenzie noted significant progress, adding that the defeat-ISIS efforts are “very close to reaching an end state against the caliphate.”

“We have always said that our mission in Syria is the defeat of ISIS,” White said. “That is nearly here, but it’s not done.”

She reiterated the commitment to defeat the terrorists.

“We continue to be focused on the defeat of ISIS,” she said. “ISIS remains a transregional threat, and the 71-nation coalition that’s fighting ISIS is committed to ensuring that we combat violent extremism wherever it is.”