By Jason Szep WASHINGTON (Reuters) – After threatening to destroy and degrade Islamic State militants, the United States will court skeptical Gulf Arab allies this week and consider expanding training and arming of moderate Syrian rebels to lead the fight against the jihadists. Secretary of State John Kerry heads to the region on Tuesday, a meeting between the White House and top lawmakers in Congress is expected to discuss a slow-moving $500 million initiative, announced in June, to strengthen a loosely organized group of rebels who have struggled in their fight against the Syrian government and Islamic State. Sources with direct knowledge of the matter said lawmakers have questions over how the money would be spent and whether the United States will end a ban on shipments of powerful weapons to the rebels, such as surface-to-air missiles, due to fears they could be captured or used against the U.S. “There has been a serious reconsideration of this issue driven by the facts on the ground in Syria,” said Fred Hof, a former State Department official involved in formulating Syria policy before joining the Atlantic Council think-tank in 2012.
Source: https://in.news.yahoo.com/u-courts-skeptical-arab-allies-islamic-state-fight-231437617.html