US official: Pentagon to send additional 4,000 US troops to Afghanistan

The Pentagon will send almost 4,000 additional US forces to Afghanistan, AP reported, citing a Trump administration official.

It follows Trump’s move to give Defense Secretary Jim Mattis the authority to adjust troop levels in Afghanistan.

The decision by Mattis could be announced as early as next week, the administration official said on condition of anonymity.

The additional troops will train and advise Afghan forces, and some of them will

be assigned to conduct terror operations against the rising threats posed by the Taliban and ISIL.

There are around 8,400 US troops deployed in Afghanistan now. Some are there to advise local forces. The number peaked in 2011, when over 100,000 US troops were dispatched there.

(CGTN)