The Pentagon may recommend that President Donald Trump deploy combat troops into Syria for the first time to accelerate the fight against the Islamic State, CNN reported on Wednesday.
The proposal is one of several under consideration by the Defense Department, an unnamed defense official said. Trump directed Defense Secretary James Mattis last month to provide within 30 days a strategy that more aggressively attacks ISIS in Syria.
The Obama administration refused to deploy conventional ground troops into Syria, though a small number of special operations forces operate in the war-torn country.
Defense officials have said the updated strategy could include deploying U.S. artillery on the ground in Syria and Army attack helicopters to assist in the Iraqi offensive to retake Raqqa.