WASHINGTON — The general leading the United States' campaign against ISIS on Wednesday told senators that he had in no way ordered intelligence reports changed to paint a better picture of the ongoing fight against the militant group.
Gen. Lloyd Austin III, head of the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), was testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the military response to ISIS that was launched one year ago. Austin's testimony came just hours after the New York Times published a story detailing the Pentagon's Inspector General is current investigation into whether CENTCOM intelligence officials manipulated reports about the effectiveness of the U.S. response to ISIS' growth.
"Have you ever ordered, suggested, or hinted to any of the intelligence command that they should sweeten the intelligence reports in order to portray a more positive view of our success in Iraq or Syria?" Sen. Angus King asked the general directly.
"Absolutely not, senator, absolutely not" Austin replied.
"Well, I just hope you will stay on this, because as you know, better than any of us, if you don't have good intelligence, you're not only going into the battle blind, if it's cooked intelligence, you're going into the battle with one hand tied behind your back," King continued.
According to the Daily Beast, which first reported the story, fifty analysts within CENTCOM claim that their superiors altered several of their conclusions. That includes, per the Times, those regarding the "readiness of Iraqi security forces and the success of the bombing campaign in Iraq and Syria."
Austin and Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Christine Wormuth also faced questions regarding the feasibility of a no-fly zone being imposed in Syria, the surge of Russian military equipment being transferred to the Syrian regime, and the U.S.' program to train and equip Syrian rebels to fight ISIS.