WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Thursday, a US House of Representatives Joint Task Force report revealed that US Central Command (CENTCOM) manipulated intelligence to present a rosy outlook of anti-Daesh efforts in Iraq and Syria.
“If these charges are shown to be well founded, it will bring discredit on CENTCOM and the US armed forces more generally,” Freeman said on Friday. “It will also explain why, despite all the claims of success against Daesh, the movement it represents is alive and well in more places than ever.”
In the US armed forces, Freeman continued, budgets and reputations depended on evidence of effectiveness, whether the evidence was adequately documented or not.
Widespread and systematic distortion of intelligence indicates an even deeper failure of US strategy and leadership in the fight against the terrorist group, Freeman suggested.
“The distortion of intelligence is an intellectually depraved, self-deceptive practice that is the forerunner of military failure,” Freeman stated.
US Senator Kelly Ayotte said in a statement on Thursday that CENTCOM officials must be held accountable for manipulating intelligence about the US efforts to fight Daesh.
US Navy Commander Kyle Raines told Sputnik on Thursday that CENTCOM was looking into the report.
The Islamic State (ISIL), also known as Daesh in Arabic, is a terrorist group banned in the United States, Russia and many other countries around the world.
