Mattis signs orders to send additional troops to Afghanistan
Source: Reuters
AUGUST 31, 2017 / 1:29 PM / 18 MINUTES AGO
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said on Thursday he had signed deployment orders to send additional troops to Afghanistan but did not specify the size of the force.
Yes, I have signed orders but it is not complete. In other words I have signed some of the (orders for) troops that will go and we are identifying the specific ones, Mattis told reporters.
Mattis declined to comment on how many additional troops were included in the orders, but U.S. officials have told Reuters that President Donald Trump has given Mattis the authority to send about 4,000 additional troops to Afghanistan.
It is more advisers, it is more enablers, fire support, for example, Mattis said. He added that no additional troops had moved in yet and could take a couple of days.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-afghanistan-military-idUSKCN1BB2JC