releases: https://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=4193375b-dae1-48f9-8ede-cdfbbd5607b7
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=4193375b-dae1-48f9-8ede-cdfbbd5607b7 | STATEMENT BY SASC CHAIRMAN JOHN McCAIN ON IRAQI FORCES RETAKING RAMADI FROM ISIL | 2015-12-28 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Republican | House | AZ | John McCain | M000303 | www.mccain.senate.gov | legacy | Washington, D.C. U.S. Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, released the following statement on reports that Iraqi forces have retaken the city center of Ramadi from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL): The liberation of the city center of Ramadi is a major milestone in the fight against ISIL, a significant achievement for the Iraqi Security Forces, and a tribute to the tireless efforts of U.S. and coalition forces who have enabled this victory. The recent capture of Tishreen Dam by opposition forces in Syria, similarly supported by U.S. and coalition forces, also represents a meaningful setback for ISIL. However, no one should understate how much work remains and how much more difficult that work will be than liberating Ramadi. The black flags of ISIL still fly over Mosul, Raqqa, and other key parts of Iraq and Syria. This threat is also metastasizing across the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. And it now poses a more direct threat than ever to our homeland and that of our allies, as we have seen in recent terrorist attacks in San Bernardino, Paris, Beirut, Ankara, and the downing of a Russian airliner over Sinai. For recent gains to endure, the ground that has been cleared in Iraq and Syria must now be held so ISIL cannot return. At the same time, the liberation of ISIL's strongholds in Iraq and Syria are essential to eliminating its ability to recruit and radicalize, but our commanders estimate that Mosul will not be retaken by the end of next year, and there is currently no local ground force in Syria that is both capable and willing to retake Raqqa, nor is one likely to emerge in the foreseeable future. These efforts must be part of a comprehensive regional strategy to counter ISIL wherever it seeks to expand and make inroads. If our goal truly is to destroy ISIL in the near future, rather than kick the can down the road for others to deal with, the United States must play a far more active role than we are now, especially in supporting local Sunni Arab forces to take the fight to ISIL themselves. More than anything, this requires the President to speak clearly to the American people about the nature of the threat we are facing, what it will take to succeed, and have the resolve to see it through. So long as this President is unwilling or incapable of exercising this leadership, the threat we face will only grow. ### | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |