The Overnight News Digest is a nightly series dedicated to chronicling the day’s news. Please recommend and then add news stories of import or interest in the comments.
I’ve been having computer issues all evening, so my apologies for the lateness and briefness of tonight’s OND.
Military Times: 400 additional U.S. troops deploy to Iraq🇺🇸 🇮🇶 Hundreds of additional U.S. troops have flowed into Iraq during the past week as American and Iraqi forces there begin final preparations to launch an invasion of Mosul this fall.
The size of the U.S. force in Iraq and Syria now tops 4,400, up from about 3,900 last week, defense officials said.
President Obama authorized several troop increases for Iraq earlier this year but those troops did not deploy immediately. The latest uptick brings the current footprint closer to the legal cap of 4,647.
Air Force Col. John Dorrian, a top spokesman for U.S. forces in Iraq, declined to say what those troops are doing but said preparations are underway to potentially launch the Mosul invasion this fall.
.