IS Too Strong A Force to Contain, Say Experts

It might be a case of "too little too late" as far as U.S. cognizance of the growing militant force called the Islamic State goes.

Experts around the world are spouting concerns about the growing military might of the Islamic State and their relentless push in both Iraq and Syria.

The airstrikes by the United States and recapture of the Mosul dam in Iraq has somewhat dented their progress but military experts call it a "tactical withdrawal" rather than an abandoning of positions.

In Syria the IS has finally captured the air base at Tabqa, the last military stronghold of the Syrian government in Raqqa province. It has declared a caliphate in regions of Iraq and Syria bigger than most countries.

The group has access to the best military equipment, funds and has well-honed military veterans leading their campaign. A large number of its troops are made up of disbanded Iraqi soldiers and ex-Iraqi commanders.  A report by ABC news says that they use military drones to gather intelligence.

The Syrian war has allowed the IS to gain access to resources and leverage that advantage, says a report by New York Times.

Their biggest advantage, according to the experts, is that they have been trained by Chechen fighters, who have immense knowledge of tactical warfare gathered in their fight against Russia. They have been known to be active in Afghanistan too . A Chechen commander named Abu Omar al-Shishani  is  known to have commanded an international brigade within IS. 

As secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel very succinctly put it at a press conference, Friday, the IS are sophisticated and well funded.

"They're beyond just a terrorist group. They marry ideology, a sophistication of strategic and tactical military prowess. They are tremendously well-funded," he said. "This is beyond anything that we've seen."

Counterterrorism expert Brian in an interview to the Daily Beast said that the IS could be defeated only through a full scale war. He  argues it "will actually require years, direct military action on both sides of the Iraq/Syria border, tens (if not hundreds) of billions of dollars, and many more than 15,000 troops."

Ben Rhodes, the President's Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications, told reporters Friday that President Obama is currently focused on protecting American lives, reports the ABC.

"Our military objectives in Iraq right now are limited to protecting our personnel and facilities and address the humanitarian crisis," Rhodes said. The "ultimate goal," however, was to "defeat" IS.