Washington : number of Daesh defectors increasing

US Department of State Spokesman John Kirby said over the last several weeks reports of more and more defections from Daesh have been recorded.

In his daily press briefing, Kirby said "reports that we’re getting from the ground that there are more and more defectors, but also that increasingly Daesh is relying on child soldiers."

He also said "Originally they would rely on children for intelligence streams, getting information, some – and then turned to using them to conduct suicide attacks, which they still do. And now we get more reports about them using children in the actual – in actual engagements, side-by-side with adult fighters. So all those are good indications that they are struggling with their ability to recruit and to retain manpower. "

"I’m not at all suggesting that we don’t still take the group seriously, that they aren’t still lethal, that they aren’t still capable. We’ve seen them conduct attacks in and around Baghdad just a week ago. So we’re still taking the threat that they pose very, very seriously, but there does appear – at least anecdotally – to be some cracks here in their – in the foundation of their manpower and their resources in that regard."

As per information on an American national in Daesh who handed himself up to the Kurdish troops in Iraq, Kirby said" I’ve seen the reports that an American citizen has been taken by Peshmerga forces, and I – what I can tell you is we’re working closely with Iraqi and Kurdish authorities to try to get more information to confirm the veracity of these reports. I just don’t have any additional information right now."

Source: MENA