The CIA said Thursday that the number of Islamic State fighters has grown to as many as three times previous estimates, a day after President Obama announced he is drastically expanding the U.S. military campaign against the militants.
A spokesperson for the agency told Fox News that new assessments show that the militant group can muster between 20,000 and 31,500 fighters across Iraq and Syria .
The spokesperson said the new figures were determined after a review of “all-source intelligence reports” on the group from May to August.
The new numbers are a big jump from the agency’s previous estimate that there were at least 10,000 Islamic State fighters. Read more at Fox News
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