New York Times, Washington :
In one of the Islamic State’s first responses to President Obama’s declaration that he would “degrade and ultimately destroy” it, the group released a short video late Tuesday in which it appeared to say that its militants would kill American ground forces should President Obama deploy them.
The timing of the video’s release was curious. Just hours earlier, President Obama’s top military adviser had told Congress that he would recommend calling out American troops against the Islamic State if the current airstrike campaign was not sufficient – even though Mr. Obama has ruled out that option.
The clip is only 52 seconds long and is billed as a preview for a longer video. With slow-motion replay, quick edits and high-quality video images, it looks like a Hollywood trailer.
It begins with American tanks and troops under attack by fire and American soldiers carrying a wounded comrade into an armored vehicle. The images flick by, including a shot of the “Mission Accomplished” banner that served as a backdrop on the day President George W. Bush landed on an aircraft carrier six weeks after the United States invaded Iraq in 2003. That is followed by shots of Mr. Obama and the White House at night.
In the background, Mr. Obama is heard saying, “American combat troops will not be returning to fight in Iraq.” The screen goes dark, followed by a clip of what appears to be a militant for the group who is preparing to kill men on their knees.
The words “Flames of War” appear, with the phrase “Fighting has just begun” below. It ends: “Coming Soon.”
In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday, Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the United States and a coalition of nations would defeat the Islamic State, also known by the acronyms ISIS and ISIL, which has seized territory across Syria and northern Iraq. But he would not rule out asking Mr. Obama to send American troops to fight the militants on the ground.
In an attempt to quell fears of another Iraq war, President Obama promised in his address to the nation last Wednesday that American ground troops would not be involved in the fighting.
General Dempsey said the “coalition is the appropriate way forward.”
“But if it fails to be true, and if there are threats to the United States, then I, of course, would go back to the president and make a recommendation that may include the use of US military ground forces,” he said.
The Islamic State video did not include any hint about why it was released late on a Tuesday night.
Laith Alkhouri, a senior analyst at Flashpoint Global Partners, a New York security consulting firm that tracks militant websites, said the Islamic State “appears to be more relentless than ever, not only expanding in territory but also raising the bar in its confrontation with the world’s top superpower.”
“In some ways, it’s attempting to prove to jihadists that while Al Qaeda is missing in action, we are rising to the occasion,” Mr. Alkhouri said. “It demonstrates the true intention of the group, to operate on an international level.”
The video is the latest that the Islamic State has produced as part of its strategy to get its message out on social media. In the past month, the group has released three videos in which it has shown the beheadings of Westerners, including two Americans. It has also released videos that have attempted to recruit Westerners; others have glorified Islamic State militants who have died in battle.
