Despite the obvious seriousness of losing the capital of Iraq’s largest province, US officials are desperately trying to portray it as simply a “minor setback.”
“To read too much into this single fight is simply a mistake,” insisted Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren, saying it just means they “have to go back and retake Ramadi.”
Secretary of State John Kerry also insisted he remains “confident” in the US war strategy against ISIS, and predicted Ramadi would be retaken in the coming days.
Pentagon officials reiterated that despite this loss, they won’t actually be changing their policy in the ISIS war in Iraq, which so far has involved open-ended airstrikes.
