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The latest on the Syria situation.

Local Members Of Congress Condemn ISIS' Actions

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  U.S. Senator Dick Durbin is condemning the murder of American journalist James Foley, who was beheaded by terrorist organization the Islamic State.

Durbin, a Democrat, says the group also known as ISIS must be stopped from advancing on more territory in Iraq and Syria. And he says the American military can help Iraqi forces do that.

"Ironically, many times ISIS is using American equipment we left behind," he said. "We know the capacity of that equipment, we know its limitations and we can help the Iraqi Army stop this advance."

Though he supports assisting the government, Durbin says the U.S. should be wary of again involving itself in Iraq just shy of three years after withdrawing troops from the nation.

But Republican Congressman Aaron Schock disagrees. Schock points out American troops remained in conflict zones even after World War Two and the Korean War. He says President Barack Obama was hasty in pulling out all troops from Iraq, and says the growth of ISIS can be traced back to withdrawal.

"ISIS is not a government entity, it's not a regime that we can contain like the president has done with Iran, or in the case of Syria," he said. "It is a very, very dangerous terrorist organization, more dangerous than al-Qaeda. And our same commitment to destroy al-Qaeda needs to be the that we have to ISIS."

Hannah covers state government and politics for Capitol News Illinois. She's been dedicated to the statehouse beat since interning at NPR Illinois in 2014, with subsequent stops at WILL-AM/FM, Law360, Capitol Fax and The Daily Line before returning to NPR Illinois in 2020 and moving to CNI in 2023.
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