Alwaght- Contradicting repeated claims by Donald Trump that ISIS has been defeated in Syria, US intelligence said the terrorist group "very likely will continue to pursue external attacks from Iraq and Syria against regional and Western adversaries, including the United States."
During a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Tuesday, Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said that ISIS "has returned to its guerrilla warfare roots while continuing to plot attacks and direct its supporters worldwide."
He also clearly stated that the terrorist group maintains a presence in Iraq and Syria.
"ISIS is intent on resurging and still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria," he said.
The National Intelligence's chief also contradicted Trump's comments on North Korea, who said in June Pyongyang did not pose any nuclear threat.
After a historic summit between Trump and North Korea leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore, the two leaders signed a brief, broadly-worded document according to which both sides committed to working “towards complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”
However, Coats, during the Tuesday hearing, said that "we currently assess that North Korea will seek to retain its WMD capabilities and is unlikely to completely give up its nuclear weapons and production capability because its leaders ultimately view nuclear weapons as critical to regime survival."
The intelligence community's "assessment is bolstered by observation of some activity that is inconsistent with full denuclearization," he noted.
