Watch America's top general assess ISIS's strengths and weaknesses

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford assesses ISIS's military capabilities
(Image credit: Th Wall Street Journal/YouTube)

Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr. has been Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the highest-ranking U.S. military officer, for only about seven weeks, but the fight against the Islamic State has changed even in that short time, he told The Wall Street Journal's Gerald Seib at a CEO Council conference on Tuesday. "I assess, and I think most people do, that the rules may have changed in Paris last week," he said, adding that America's "much more energized approach" largely involves trying to persuade NATO members and Gulf Arab Sunnis to step up their efforts.

Seib noted that the attacks on Paris demonstrated ISIS's terrorism capabilities, but now that France and Russia are pushing for a global coalition to beat ISIS on the battlefield, he asked Dunford for his assessment of the self-proclaimed caliphate's military capabilities. The general said he thinks ISIS is "a very sophisticated organization" that has showed its resilience, adaptability, and tactical proficiency. In Paris and, more regularly in Iraq, they have proven to have "fairly capable military forces," Dunford said. "I think it would be a mistake to underestimate them."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.