U.S. official claims ISIS is losing foreign fighters
WASHINGTON - A top Obama administration official says the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) ranks of foreign fighters have dropped to about 25,000 from a peak of 35,000.
Brett McGurk is the U.S. special envoy for the global coalition to counter ISIS. He says fighters from 120 countries have joined ISIS.
McGurk is touting progress in the U.S.-led effort to defeat ISIS. He says the extremist group is under pressure and has cut fighters' salaries by about half.
The group -- which once bragged about minting its own currency -- is having trouble meeting expenses, thanks to coalition airstrikes and other measures that have eroded millions of dollars from its finances since last fall. Last year both the U.S.-led coalition, as well as Russian fighters, began targeting their oil production capabilities and cash stores.
Those circumstances include the dramatic drop in global prices for oil - once a key source of income. Additionally, the targeted airstrikes have dramatically reduced cash stockpiles and oil infrastructure. And the Iraqi government has stopped paying civil servants in territory controlled by the extremists.
In addition to targeting their image as a cash-rich group, the U.S.-led coalition has also targeted ISIS' slick online propaganda machine.
McGurk says President Barack Obama will get an update on diplomatic and political efforts Thursday at the State Department.
The meeting comes after the U.S. and Russia announced a cease-fire agreement for Syria to take effect later this week. McGurk says the U.S. is under no illusions about how difficult implementing the cease-fire will be.