US deploys heavily armed Marines to Syria

A couple hundred Marines have deployed into Syria with
 heavy artillery guns, as part of the ongoing preparation for 
the fight to push ISIL out of its self-declared headquarters of Raqqa, a Pentagon spokesman has confirmed.

The Marines are pre-positioning howitzers to be ready to
assist local Syrian forces, an US official who was not
authorised to discuss the deployment publicly told the
Associated Press on condition of anonymity on Wednesday.

The deployment is temporary. But it could be an indication
that the White House is leaning towards giving the Pentagon
greater flexibility to make routine combat decisions in the 
fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, or ISIS).

Military commanders frustrated by what they considered
micromanagement under the previous administration 
have argued for greater freedom to make daily decisions 
on how best to fight the enemy.

In addition, the US is preparing to send up to 1,000 troops
 to Kuwait in order to be ready to join the ISIL fight if they
 are needed, officials said.

Proponents of the move said it would provide US
commanders on the ground greater flexibility to quickly
respond to unforeseen opportunities and challenges on the
battlefield.

The latest troop movements come on the heels of the
 recent temporary deployment of some dozens of army 
forces to the outskirts of Manbij, Syria, in what the Pentagon called a "reassure and deter" mission.

Flying American flags and moving in large, heavily 
armoured vehicles, the troops were there to keep a lid on tensions in the area, the Pentagon said.

Under the existing limits put in place by the Obama
administration, the military can have up to 500 US forces 
in Syria, although temporary personnel do not count against the cap.

The special operations fighters are ostensibly there to
 train and assist the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an umbrella group of Kurdish and Arab fighters that have proven to be a key ground asset in the US-led coalition's battle against ISIL.

Pentagon leaders sent a new plan to defeat ISIL to the
 White House late last month. It outlined a strategy that
 would likely increase the number of US troops in Syria in
 order to better advise and enable the US-backed Syrian fighters who will take on the battle for Raqqa.

The military has mapped out a series of options for the 
Syria fight, including increased artillery support, more 
Apache helicopters and a more robust training campaign.

US officials say the battle for Raqqa will look much like the
fight in neighbouring Iraq, where local forces are in a fierce
battle to retake the northern city of Mosul - ISIL's last
stronghold in the country.

As troops were preparing to move into Mosul, the US
 set up bases outside the city to use as logistical hubs and
 as locations for heavy artillery.

The moves to pre-position US troops closer to the fight, so
they can be tapped as needed, are the kinds of decisions that
military commanders say they need to be able to make more
quickly, without going to the White House every time for

approval.