200 more American troops head to Syria

Two hundred additional American special operations troops will head to Syria to help Syrian Kurdish and Arab forces fighting Daesh terrorists, Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced on Saturday at a security conference in Bahrain.

The troop increase will bring the total number of US troops in Syria to 500, ABC News reported.

A defense official said the additional troops will help train, advise and assist the growing number of Syrian rebel forces preparing to retake and hold Raqqa, Daesh's de facto capital city in Syria.

Carter, who made the announcement at the International Institute for Strategic Studies' Manama Dialogue, said the additional forces will help "to continue organizing, training, equipping, and otherwise enabling capable, motivated, local forces."

He added, "This latest commitment of additional forces within Syria is another important step in enabling our partners to deal Daesh a lasting defeat."

The additional 200 troops being deployed to Syria will include special operations forces, trainers, advisers, and explosive ordnance disposal teams.

The 300 American special operations forces already in Syria mainly advise and assist the Syrian Democratic Forces, a group of 45,000 Syrian Kurdish and Arab rebel forces that have been fighting Daesh terrorists.

Source: MENA