The US is investigating claims that a cache of weapons dropped into Syria to help Kurdish fighters actually ended up in the hands of Islamic State militants.
It admitted that one bundle had gone astray, but said this had been destroyed with an air strike to prevent it from falling into enemy hands.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
However, IS has released a new video in which militants boast about recovering weapons and supplies intended for Kurdish fighters. The footage appears to show a masked militant going through a crate filled with hand grenades.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said that militants had seized one cache.
Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said he could not confirm if the video was authentic. "They are certainly of the kinds of material that was dropped... so it's not out of the realm of the possible in that regard," he said.
The Washington Post says the incident "highlights the difficulty in making sure all air drops are accurate, even with GPS-guided parachutes that the Air Force commonly uses".
The newspaper says the air drops were made partly because Turkey refused to allow Kurdish fighters to cross its borders into Kobane to bolster the town's defences. Turkish officials have since changed their minds but the deal is said to be "tentative".
After weeks of fighting, Kurdish forces control most of Kobane, but IS remains a threat, said Kirby. The militants had been kept at bay by efforts on the ground from Kurdish forces, as well as dozens of air strikes by the US-led coalition.
Yesterday, the US military announced a further four air strikes near Kobane, which they said hit IS fighting positions and a building occupied by the militants.
-
August 30 editorial cartoonsCartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump's role reversal and King George III
-
5 bullseye cartoons about the reasons for mass shootingsCartoons Artists take on gun worship, a price paid, and more
-
Lisa Cook and Trump's battle for control the US FedTalking Point The president's attempts to fire one of the Federal Reserve's seven governor is represents 'a stunning escalation' of his attacks on the US central bank
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
Kurdish PKK militia to disband for Turkey talksspeed read The Kurdistan Workers' Party will disarm after four decades of armed conflict with Turkey, putting an end to 'one of the longest insurgencies in the Middle East'
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designationThe Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across SyriaTHE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weaponsThe Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
