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b'The US has begun bombing Iraq and Syria in the name of fighting the self-declared Islamic State. But is the real goal targeting the ISIL?\\xa0Excerpt from October 8, 2014 US Department of State Daily Press Briefing:Jennifer Psaki (US Department of State Spokesperson): Our objectives here are going after the threat of ISIL, the safe havens where ISIL has in Syria. There will be other towns and cities that we know will be threatened in Syria, but we have to focus on our strategic components here, which are command and control centers, which are oil refineries, which are other pieces where we\\u2019ve done our precision strikes over the past several weeks.QUESTION:\\xa0So saving people \\u2013 saving innocent lives from this \\u2013 from ISIL, which you\\u2019ve called barbaric and evil and everything else under the sun, is not as \\u2013 is just not a priority?Psaki:\\xa0Absolutely not.More than a decade after the US and its coalition allies promoted and pursued a military campaign in Iraq, a new campaign is being launched. This time, the rationale (excuse) is not weapons of mass destruction. The casus belli in this case is the need to control and contain the threat posed by a group dubbed the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).Formerly known as al-Qaeda in Iraq, the profile of the militants has increased over the past several months in the wake of their conquest of strategic territory within a broad swath of Iraq and Syria. Most notably, the group\\u2019s reputation for barbarism has been underscored by a number ofhigh profile beheadings, in recent months.While this broadcast was aired, the Kurdish city of Kobani on the Turkish-Syria border is\\xa0at risk of falling\\xa0before the repressive ISIL insurgents.While the need to respond to the threat posed by the Islamic State is understandable, at least two questions need to be addressed as Western leaders agitate for military aggression in the region.1) Is the US bombing campaign currently underway effectively eroding the Islamic State militants\\u2019 ability to threaten civilians in the region and abroad?2) Given the US is no stranger to evoking phony pre-texts for war, is the need \\u201cto eliminate the terrorist group ISIL and the threat they pose to Iraq, the region and the wider international community,\\u201d the true reason for Operation Inherent Resolve, as it\\u2019s now being called?This week\\u2019s Global Research News Hour centres on the US coalition\\u2019s current military mobilization against the entity known as ISIL/ISIS, the likely objectives and propsects for success with two geo-political analysts.Lawrence Wilkerson\\xa0is a Visiting Professor of Government and Public Policy at The College of William and Mary in Virginia. He formerly served as Chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell. Global Research News Hour contributor Jon Wilson interviewed the US Army Veteran following a speech he gave at the University of Winnipeg on ISIS and the Middle East. Wilkerson attempts to explain the US strategy, his contention of it being fueled by a Sunni-Shia split within Iraq, and his prescription for the prospects for success.\\xa0Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya\\xa0is an award-winning author, geopolitical analyst, sociologist,\\xa0and frequent contributor to Global Research. His view is that the operation against the so-called\\xa0Islamic State is largely a smokescreen and puts forward his\\xa0thesis that a larger regional power grab\\xa0is the ultimate goal for the US.\\xa0Nazemroaya will be holding workshops at the World Peace Forum Society\\u2019s 7th Annual Teach-In, Oct. 25, 2014, at the Simon Fraser University Harbour Centre, 515 West Hastings, Vancouver. For more details, please visit\\xa0www.peaceforumteachin.org.\\xa0\\xa0Julie L\\xe9vesque\\xa0is an independent Journalist and Associate Editor at Global Research focussing on the complex dynamics of this new offensive.For further details, see the following GR articles recommended by\\xa0Julie L\\xe9vesque\\xa0\\u201cGreater Israel\\u201d: The Zionist Plan for the Middle EastPreparing the Chessboard for the \\u201cClash of Civilizations\\u201d: Divide, Conquer and Rule the \\u201c'