War on terror

Carter: Orlando attack underscores need to hasten Islamic State fight

The Islamic State group is losing its battles for territory in Iraq and Syria, but the most recent mass shooting on American soil inspired by the terrorist organization underscores the need to accelerate the U.S.-led campaign, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said Monday.

Carter, once again, called on America’s military partners in the fight against the Islamic State to do more to hasten the campaign against the terrorist group, in a speech during the Center for a New American Security’s annual conference in Washington, D.C. that focused largely on the strategic importance of U.S. military allies across the globe.

Fighting terrorism, namely the Islamic State group, is one of five key global security endeavors for the United States, Carter said. The attack last week by a gunman on an Orlando nightclub that left 49 dead and more than 50 others injured was reportedly inspired by the terrorist group. The mass shooting only reinforces the existing influence of Islamic State, even as its been corralled in Iraq and Syria, where the group has lost massive amounts of territory.