Sen. Burr: Islamic State 'Operatives Are Everywhere'

It's past time for containment when it comes to the Islamic State — the United States must move "decisively and with purpose" to eliminate the threat, Sen. Richard Burr said in Saturday's GOP address.

"Overseas, we must work with our allies to target its leadership, its infrastructure, and its financial support network," the North Carolina Republican, who chairs the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, commented in his address. 

"The world in which we live is becoming increasingly dangerous and the number of extremists who wish to do us harm is growing. More troubling, their capabilities to do harm may soon outpace the [Obama] Administration’s strategy of 'containment.'"

The growing threat is no longer confined to the Middle East, South Asia, or Europe, said Burr, and even since the Brussels terror attacks two weeks ago, four more incidents have left nearly 150 people dead in Iraq, Yemen, and Pakistan.

Burr said he has spent 15 years conducting oversight of the nation's intelligence community and is briefed almost daily on threats, and he "cannot remember a time where the United States and our allies faced a greater array of threats across the world ... I feel strongly that we cannot simply focus our efforts on how to best respond to attacks once they’ve happened."

Meanwhile, the United States and its allies are still continuing with the efforts implemented after the 9/11 attacks to defeat al-Qaida while ISIS, which dates back to al-Qaida in Iraq, continues to grow.

"The Islamic State’s technical and social media savvy has inspired many to join its cause and to conduct horrific acts," he said. "The Islamic State is well-financed, well-organized, and fields combat units that are well trained and brutally effective."

And as the trained fighters are being deployed beyond Iraq and Syria, simply containing them is no longer an option, Burr said.

President Barack Obama has claimed that the terrorist organization is contained in those countries, he continued, while the more important thing to consider is its global footprint, as it has declared provinces in 10 countries, has a presence in over 30 countries, and is growing in Libya and Afghanistan.

"When the President says that we must seek to 'contain' ISIL – I don’t know where he wants to contain them: ISIL operatives are everywhere," said Burr.



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