McCain makes secret trip to Syria as US debates new plans to fight Islamic State
Published February 23, 2017
Sen. John McCain made a secret trip to northern Syria to visit U.S. military officials and Kurdish fighters and to discuss the campaign for defeating the Islamic State, his office said Wednesday.
McCain, R-Ariz., made the visit to the war-torn country as U.S.-coalition forces prepare for a major battled to oust militants from ISIS’ de facto capital of Raqqa. A statement from the senator's office did not give the dates of his travel, saying only that he made the visit last week.
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McCain on Monday welcomed Trump's selection of Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster to be his national security adviser, calling the pick an "outstanding choice."
McCain first visited Syria in 2013 to meet with leaders of the Free Syrian Army, which is backed by U.S. forces and is the opposition to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad. The trip is believed to be his first since then, according to The Wall Street Journal. He’s also believed to be the first U.S. lawmaker to travel to Kurdish-controlled region of Syria since the U.S. made it its base for special-forces operations.
http:// www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/02/23/mccain-makes-secret-trip-to-syria-as-us-debates-new-plans-to-fight-islamic-state.html