of the american people. over the last several years, we have consistently taken the fight to terrorists who threaten our country. we took out osama bin laden and much of al qaeda's leadership in afghanistan and pakistan. we've targeted al qaeda's affiliate in yemen, and recently eliminated the top commander of its affileate in somalia. we've done so while bringing more than 140,000 american troops home from iraq, and drawing down our combat mission will end later this year. thanks to our military and counter-terrorism professionals, america is safer. still, we continue to face a terrorist threat. we can't erase every trace of evil from the world, and small groups of killers have the

capacity to do great harm. that was the case before 9/11, and that remains true today. that's why we must remain vigilant as threats emerge. at this moment, the greatest threats come from the middle east and north africa, where radical groups exploit grievances for their own gain. and one of those groups is isil, which calls itself the islamic state. now, let's make two things cle clear-- isil is not islamic. no religion condones the killing of innocents and the vast majority of isil's victims have been muslims. and isil is certainly not a state. it was formally al qaeda's affiliate in iraq and has taken advantage of sectarianian strife, and syria's civil war to gain territory on both sides of the iraq-syria border. it is recognized by no government, nor by the people it subjugates. isil is a terrorist organization, pure and simple. and it has no vision other than the slaughter of all who stand in its way.

in a roogz that has known so much bloodshed, she's terrorists are unique this their brutality. they execute captured prisoners. they kill children. they enclave, rape, and force women into marriage. they threaten the religious minority with genocide. and in acts of barbarism, they took the lives of two american journalists, jim foley and steven sotloff. eo isil poses a threat to the people of iraq and syria and the broader middle east, including american citizens, personnel, and facilities. if left unchecked, these terrorists could pose a growing threat beyond that region, including to the united states. while we have not yet detected specific plotting against our homeland, isil leaders have threatened america and our allies. our intelligence community believes that thousands of foreigners, including europeans and some americans, have joined

them in syria and iraq, trained and battle hardened, these fighters could try to return to their home countries and carry out deadly attacks. i know many americans are concerned about these threats. tonight, i want you to know that the united states of america is meeting them with strength and resolve. last month i ordered our military to take targeted action against isil to stop its advances. since then, we've conducted more than 150 successful air strikes in iraq. these strikes have protected american personnel and facilities, killed isil fighters, destroyed weapons, and given space for iraqi and kurdish forces to reclaim key territory. these strikes have also helped save the lives of thousands of innocent men, women, and children. #-r but this is not our fight alone.

american power can make a decisive difference but we cannot do for iraqis what they must do for themselves, nor can we take the place of arab partners this securing their region. that's why i've insisted that additional u.s. action depended upon iraqis forming an inclusive government, which they have now done in recent days. so tonight, with a new iraqi government in place, and following consultations with allies abroad and congress at home, i can announce america will lead a broad coalition to roll back this terrorist threat. our objective is clear-- we will degrade and ultimately destroy isil through a comprehensive and sustained counter-terrorism strategy. first, we will conduct a systematic campaign of air strikes against these terrorists. working with the iraqi government, we will expand our efforts beyond protecting our own people and humanitarian missions so that we're hitting isil targets as iraqi forces go

on offense. moreover, i've made it clear we will hunt down terrorists who threaten our country wherever they are. that means i will not hesitate to take action against isil in syria, as well as iraq. this is a core principle of my presidency. if you threaten america, you will find no safe haven. second, we will increase our support to forces fighting these terrorists on the ground in june i deployed several hundred american service members to iraq to assess how we can best support iraqi security forces. now that those teams have completed their work and iraq has formed a government, we will send an additional 475 service members to iraq. as i've said before, these american forces will not have a combat mission. we will not get dragged into another ground war in iraq but they are needed to support iraqi and kurdish forces with training, intelligence, and

equipment. we'll useless support iraq's efforts to stand up national guard units to help sunni communities secure their own freedom from isil's control. across the border in syria, we have ramped up our military assistance to the syrian opposition. tonight, i call on congress again to give us additional authorities and resources to train and equip these fighters. in the fight against isil, we cannot rely on an assad regime that terrorizes its own people, a regime that will never regain the legitimacy it has lost. instead, we must strengthen the opposition as the best counter-weight to extremists like isil while pursuing the political solution necessary to solve syria's crise once and for all. third, we will continue to draw on our substantial counter-terrorism capabilities to prevent isil attacks. working with our partners, we will redouble our efforts to cut

off its fund, improve our intelligence, strengthen our defenses, counter its warped idol, and stem the flow of foreign fighters into and out of the middle east. and in two weeks, i will chair a meeting of the u.n. security council to further mobilize the international community around this effort. fourth, we will continue to provide humanitarian assistance to innocent civilians who have been displaced by this terrorist organization. this includes sunni and shia muslims who are at grave risk as well as tens of thousands of christians and other religious minoritys. we cannot allow these communities to be driven from their ancient homelands. so this is our strategy, and in each of these four part of our strategy, america will be joined by a broad coalition of partners. already, allies are flying planes with us over iraq sending arms and assistance to iraqi security forces and the syrian opposition, sharing

intelligence, and providing billions of dollars in humanitarian aid. secretary kerry was in iraq today meeting with the new government and supporting their efforts to promote unity, and in the coming days he will travel across the middle east and europe to enlist more partners in this fight, especially arab nations who can help mobilize sunni communities in iraq and syria to drive these terrorists from their lands. this is american leadership at its best. we stand with people who fight for their own freedom, and we rally other nations on behalf of our common security and common humanity. my administration has also secured bipartisan support for this approach here at home. i have the authority to address the threat from isil, but i believe we are strongest as a nation when the president and congress work together. so i welcome congressional support for this effort in order to show the world that americans are united in confronting this danger.

now, it will take time to eradicate a cancer like isil. and any time we take military action, there are risks involved, especially to the servicemen and women who carry out these missions. but i want the american people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in iraq and afghanistan. it will not be involve american combat troops fighting on foreign soil. this counter-terrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out isil wherever they exist using our airpower, and our support for partners' forces on the ground. this strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us while supporting partners on the front lines is one that we have successfully pursued in yemen and somalia for years and it is consistent with the ai outlined earlier this year. to use force against anyone who threatens america's core interests but to mobilize partners wherever possible to address broader challenges to

international order. my fellow americans, we live in a time of great change. tomorrow marks 13 years since our country was attacked. next week marks six years since our economy suffered its worst setback since the great depression. yet, despite these shocks, through the pain we felt and the grueling work required to bounce back, america is better positioned today to seize the future than any other nation on earth. our technology companies and universities are unmatched. our manufacturing and auto industries are thriving. energy independence is closer than ever been in decades. for all the work that remains, our businesses are in the longest, uninterrupted stretch of job creation in our history, despite all the divisions and discord within our democracy. i see the grit and determination and common goodness of the american people every single

day. and that makes me more confident than ever about our country's future. aabroad, american leadership is the one constant in an uncertain world. it is america that has the capacity and the will to mobilize the world against terrorists. it is america that has rallied the world against russian aggression, and in support of the ukrainian people' people's o determine their own destiny. it is america-- our scientists, our doctors, our any-how-- that can help contain and cure the outbreak of ebola. it is america that helped remove and destroy syria's chemical weapons so they can't pose a threat to the syrian people or the world again. and it is america that is helping muslim communities around the world, not just in the fight against terrorism but in the fight for opportunity and tolerance and a more hopeful future. america, our endless blessings

bestow an enduring burden. but as americans, we welcome our responsibility to lead. from europe to asia, from the far reaches of africa to war-torn capitals of the middle east, we stand for freedom, for justice, for dignity. these are value values that have guided our nation since its founding. tonight, i ask for your support in carrying that leadershiped for. i do so as a commander in chief who could not be prouder of our men and women in uniform, pilots who bravely fly in the face of danger above the middle east, and servicemembers who support our partners on the ground. when we helped prevent the massacre of civilians trapped on a distant mountain, here's what one of them said, "we owe our american friends our lives. our children will always remember that there was someone

who felt our struggle and made a long journey to protect innocent people." that is the difference we make in the world. in our own safety, our own security, depend upon our willingness to do what it takes to defend this nation and uphold the values that we stand for. timeless ideals that will endure long after those who offer only hate and destruction have been vanquished from the earth. may god bless our troops, and may god bless the united states of america. >> schieffer: so the president of the united states lays out a strategy to defeat and destroy isis, or as they're sometimes called, isil. and this speech tonight shows us a real evolution in where the president was just in the last week of august, when he said