The president signed off on the plan only recently after his advisers convinced him that increased US presence would help the Pentagon make new gains against the Islamic State (Daesh), a terror group outlawed by the United States, Russia and other nations, which is in control of large swaths of Syrian land.
According to the outlet’s sources, the troops will not likely engage in combat operations, although they will be close to the front line. Instead, they will provide intelligence, medical and logistics support to Arab fighters in northern Syria. It is not clear how many of them will be with special operations forces.
Obama is anticipated to announce his decision in Hannover, Germany, where he will inaugurate the Hannover Messe, which is the world’s largest trade fair for industrial technology. The fair will take place from Monday through Friday.