Ex-Pentagon Official: US to Train-Assist Forces in Libya

The US military might provide training and assistance to local forces in Libya to fight the Islamic State, but will likely avoid direct intervention, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Steven Bucci told Sputnik.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Department of Defense spokesman Peter Cook told reporters the United States was considering deploying military forces to Libya, including ground troops.

"[Cook’s statement] very likely means training and advisory assistance [in Libya]," Bucci told Sputnik on Friday. "It is highly unlikely that they mean direct US military action."

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said on Thursday the US military had not yet decided to take action in Libya.

Earlier this week, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Joseph Dunford said the Obama administration wanted to take decisive military action against the Islamic State in Libya, in an effort to create a "fire wall" between them and other terror groups operating in Africa.

The Islamic State, also known as Daesh, is a designated terrorist group that is outlawed in the United States and Russia, among numerous other countries.