US Offers Helicopter Support in Ramadi

By Simon Kent.

US Defense Secretary Ash Carter has said that, if requested the Iraqi army can benefit from US ground attack helicopters and embedded military advisers in the final stages of the fight for Ramadi.

The Iraqi army have recently made significant advances into the center of the town, (pictured above) which is the capital city of Anbar province and fell to ISIS, also called Daesh, in June this year.

The fall of the town was a shock to US observers and PM Abadi's government, and re-capturing it will be a major victory for the Iraqi army, who have struggled to re-take territory from ISIS since their near collapse last year.

The US has been re-training Iraqi army units, with evident success and while the Iraqis have re-captured most of Ramadi with US fixed wing air support, the final stages are expected to be problematic as ISIS are expected to fight to the death.

Subsequently, the US has offered extra help in the form of ground attack helicopters, which will put American air crews in heightened danger.

(Various sources.)