U.S. Intelligence Officials Warn of Threats Posed by the Islamic State

Today, U.S. intelligence officials, including Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats, CIA Director Gina Haspel, and FBI Director Christopher Wray, briefed the Senate Intelligence Committee on the intelligence community’s assessment of threats to the U.S. The offered stark warnings of the threats that continue to be posed by the Islamic State, observing that in spite of significant gains against the group it is still likely to try to attack the U.S. Coats remarked that the Islamic State “still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria” and “thousands of dispersed supporters around the world, despite significant leadership and territorial losses.” He added, “[The Islamic State] will continue to be a threat to the United States, and we’re going to have to continue to keep our eyes on that…as the realization that this terrorism threat is going to continue for some time.” The officials’ remarks covered a other national security challenges too, including threats posed by nation states like China, Russia, and North Korea. Read the article at The Hill.