{"id":40815,"date":"2019-03-07T18:40:17","date_gmt":"2019-03-07T18:40:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:22:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:22:18","slug":"whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2014 Despite the Islamic State group\u2019s territorial losses, it is not surrendering and will morph into an insurgency marked by assassinations, improvised bomb attacks and ambushes, warned America\u2019s top general in the Middle East to Congress on Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cReduction of the physical caliphate is a monumental military accomplishment, but the fight against ISIS and violent extremism is far from over,\u201d U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Joseph Votel<\/a> told the House Armed Services Committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

ISIS fighters \u201cremain unrepentant<\/a>, unbroken and radicalized,\u201d he said, noting that they are shrewdly safeguarding their families and capabilities by melting into remote areas and camps for displaced people, \u201cwaiting for the right time to resurge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will need to maintain a vigilant offensive against this now widely dispersed and disaggregated organization that includes leaders, fighters, facilitators and of course their toxic ideology,\u201d Votel said, calling it \u201ca serious generational problem, if not handled correctly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His assessment contradicts President Donald Trump, who said in recent weeks the group was on the brink of eradication and had lost 100 percent of the territory it once controlled in Syria. (Votel said ISIS maintains a 1-mile sliver<\/a> of the 34,000 square miles it once held.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
U.S. Central Command chief Gen. Joseph Votel testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on March 7, 2019. (Susan Walsh\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In December, Trump announced that he was pulling all American troops out of Syria, but partially reversed course and agreed to keep a residual force of perhaps a few hundred troops as part of an international effort to stabilize northeastern Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. and other western countries are backing a Syrian group known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, comprised of local Kurdish and Arab fighters who have battled ISIS for more than three years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Thursday, Votel predicted that in the next phase, Islamic State fighters might employ \u201clow-level\u201d tactics, but he expressed confidence in the small U.S. force, backed by allies and the ability to mass forces from elsewhere in the region. \u201cWe\u2019re going to have to keep pressure on this,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Democratic lawmakers criticized the administration for not consulting allies and military leaders prior to announcing in December, on Twitter, that ISIS was defeated and that U.S. forces would leave Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an exchange with House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., Votel offered assurances the withdrawal would be driven by the defeat of ISIS, and not an arbitrary timeline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is not pressure on me to meet a specific date at this particular time,\u201d Votel said, punting further details to a closed session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smith questioned whether military necessity was actually driving the administration\u2019s decision-making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhat seems to be driving the withdrawal is the president\u2019s split-second decision to send out a tweet that we\u2019re going to get out of Syria,\u201d Smith said. \u201cThe public perception, the international perception is that prior to that tweet, it wasn\u2019t planned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The panel\u2019s ranking member, Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, said it was important to maintain pressure on ISIS, but he was optimistic both that allies would join America\u2019s residual force in Syria and that such a force would be sufficient for the next phase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know it\u2019s enough [of a troop presence]; time will tell,\u201d Thornberry said, \u201cbut what I\u2019m incredibly grateful for is we will have a continuing presence to do it, rather than completely leave, which was my big fear.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Associated Press contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":82970,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":8,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"2":{"categories":["pentagon-congress","news","flashpoints"],"primary_category":"pentagon-congress"},"4":{"categories":["pentagon-congress","news","flashpoints","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"pentagon-congress"},"5":{"categories":["pentagon-congress","news","flashpoints","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"pentagon-congress"},"6":{"categories":["pentagon-congress","news","flashpoints","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"pentagon-congress"},"7":{"categories":["pentagon-congress","news","flashpoints","daily-news-roundup","newsletters"],"primary_category":"pentagon-congress"}}},"categories":[8,160,11,47,36],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3446],"class_list":["post-40815","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-congress","category-daily-news-roundup","category-global","category-mideast-africa","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"5SUXJROL65HB7N7THY7YU244NU","arc_canonical_url":"\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"\nWhat\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers - Defense News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Defense News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Joe Gould\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Joe Gould\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t \"@graph\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#article\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/\"\n\t },\n\t \"author\": {\n\t \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t },\n\t \"headline\": \"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers\",\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00\",\n\t \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00\",\n\t \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/\"\n\t },\n\t \"wordCount\": 596,\n\t \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t \"publisher\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"articleSection\": [\n\t \"Congress\",\n\t \"Daily News Roundup\",\n\t \"Global\",\n\t \"Mideast Africa\",\n\t \"Newsletters\"\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#respond\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers - Defense News\",\n\t \"isPartOf\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\"\n\t },\n\t \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t },\n\t \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"datePublished\": \"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00\",\n\t \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00\",\n\t \"description\": \"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.\",\n\t \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t },\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t \"target\": [\n\t \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/\"\n\t ]\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/2019\\\/03\\\/07\\\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t \"itemListElement\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 1,\n\t \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 2,\n\t \"name\": \"Congress\",\n\t \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/congress\\\/\",\n\t \"ad_zone\": \"congress\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t \"position\": 3,\n\t \"name\": \"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#website\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t \"description\": \"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News\",\n\t \"publisher\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\"\n\t },\n\t \"potentialAction\": [\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t \"target\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t },\n\t \"query-input\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t }\n\t }\n\t ],\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#organization\",\n\t \"name\": \"Defense News\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/\",\n\t \"logo\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/defensenews-logo-white.png\",\n\t \"caption\": \"Defense News\"\n\t },\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t }\n\t },\n\t {\n\t \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t \"image\": {\n\t \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t },\n\t \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/defensenews\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t }\n\t ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers - Defense News","description":"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers","og_description":"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/","og_site_name":"Defense News","article_published_time":"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00","author":"Joe Gould","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Joe Gould","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers","datePublished":"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/"},"wordCount":596,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Congress","Daily News Roundup","Global","Mideast Africa","Newsletters"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/","name":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers - Defense News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2019-03-07T18:40:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-07T23:22:18+00:00","description":"The head of U.S. Central Command says the Islamic State group maintains a 1-mile sliver of the 34,000 square miles it once held.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2019\/03\/07\/whats-the-next-step-for-isis-a-top-us-general-shares-his-prediction-with-lawmakers\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Congress","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/","ad_zone":"congress"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"What\u2019s the next step for ISIS? A top US general shares his prediction with lawmakers"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","name":"Defense News","description":"Covering the politics, business and technology of defense | Defense News","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#organization","name":"Defense News","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/defensenews-logo-white.png","caption":"Defense News"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Defense News","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-1128594219-Cropped.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40815","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=40815"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40815\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":40836,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/40815\/revisions\/40836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=40815"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=40815"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=40815"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=40815"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}