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Top Pentagon official makes surprise visit to Iraq

Martin Dempsey, the top military officer in the U.S., made an unannounced visit to Iraq as the battle against the Islamic State is being stepped up.

By UPI Staff
Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey testifies during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the Obama administration's strategy against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on November 13, 2014. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey testifies during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the Obama administration's strategy against Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on November 13, 2014. UPI/Kevin Dietsch | License Photo

BAGHDAD, Nov. 15 (UPI) -- The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, visited Iraq on Saturday for the first time since the U.S. began airstrikes meant to thwart the advances of the Islamic State.

During his unannounced visit, Dempsey told American troops the battle against IS was "starting to turn" but he predicted the campaign would last for several more years.

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While in Baghdad, Dempsey was scheduled to have meetings with top generals and with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to discuss strategies to retake parts of Iraq that are now controlled by the Sunni-led militant group.

Dempsey's trip to Iraq comes just days after President Barrack Obama approved sending an additional 1,500 troops, a move that would nearly double the planned U.S. troop presence in the country.

While Dempsey was in the country, Iraqi officials reported fighters with the Islamic State were starting to withdraw from an area around the Baiji refinery. The facility, Iraq's largest refinery located about 110 miles north of Bagdhad, has been under siege since June.

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It was not immediately clear if Iraqi forces were on the grounds of the refinery where pro-government forces have been trapped inside.

Islamic State forces continued to make gains in western Iraq's Anbar province, but the major offensive this week by Iraqi forces, aided by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes -- the retaking of Baiji -- has been a significant setback for the militants.

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