“As I thank General [John] Allen for his service, I am pleased to welcome his Deputy, Brett McGurk, as my new Special Presidential Envoy for the Counter ISIL [Islamic State] campaign,” Obama said.
General Allen led the international campaign against the Islamic State terrorist group encompassing more than 60 states since its inception in 2014.
Obama thanked Allen for postponing his planned retirement 13 months ago to continue serving the US government to build from scratch a robust international coalition to ultimately destroy the Islamic State.
Obama noted McGurk has plenty of experience and will be an asset to the United States in the continued fight against the Islamic State.
"Brett has been with General Allen at every key moment in this campaign and has long been one of my most trusted advisers on Iraq," Obama said. "Brett has my full support as he continues broadening and deepening our Coalition efforts to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL [Islamic State]."
Obama expressed hope that McGurk will work closely with the national security team to cement the US partnership with Iraq and work with Middle Eastern partners to end the Syrian civil war and eventually win the fight against the Islamic State.
On October 16, Allen began a week-long trip to the Gulf region to talk with regional partners about further coordination of military operations against Islamic State.
