Trump son-in-law Kushner in Iraq to review ISIS offensive
Baghdad, April 3: President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner visited Iraq Monday with the top US military officer to meet Iraqi leaders and review the fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), officials said.
The visit comes as Iraqi forces battle to retake Mosul from ISIS with support from US-led air strikes that have recently been criticised for causing civilian deaths in the city’s west. Nearly 290,000 people have fled the city to escape the fighting, according to the UN.
Marine General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, asked Mr Kushner and White House homeland security adviser Tom Bossert to accompany him on the trip so they could hear “firsthand and unfiltered” from military advisers about the situation on the ground and interact with US forces.
“I said, ‘Hey, next time I go to Iraq, if you’re interested, come and it’d be good,” Gen. Dunford said, adding he extended the invitation weeks ago.
“Mr Kushner is travelling
For Kushner, who has not been to Iraq before, the trip comes at a critical time as Trump looks at ways to accelerate a US-led coalition campaign that has so far been successful in uprooting ISIS in Iraq & Syria
on behalf of the President to express the President’s support and commitment to the government of Iraq and US personnel currently engaged in the campaign,” Navy Captain Greg Hicks said in an emailed statement.
For Mr Kushner, who has not been to Iraq before, the trip comes at a critical time as Mr Trump examines ways to accelerate a US-led coalition campaign that US and Iraqi officials say has so far been largely successful in uprooting ISIS militants in Iraq and Syria.
Mr Kushner, who has no diplomatic or military experience, has been touted by President Trump as “a natural” to solve the Israeli-Palestine conflict. His visit to Iraq comes before either National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster or secretary of state Rex Tillerson have visited the country.
Valued by Mr Trump for his discretion and loyalty, the baby-faced 36-year-old is officially a White House senior adviser with far-reaching influence over domestic and foreign policy.