New York Times

By MARK LANDLER and ERIC SCHMITT

JUNE 17, 2014

WASHINGTON — President Obama is considering a targeted, highly selective campaign of airstrikes against Sunni militants in Iraqsimilar to counterterrorism operations in Yemen, rather than the widespread bombardment of an air war, a senior administration official said on Tuesday.

Such a campaign, most likely using drones, could last for a prolonged period, the official said. But it is not likely to begin for days or longer, and would hinge on the United States’ gathering adequate intelligence about the location of the militants, who are intermingled with the civilian population in Mosul, Tikrit and other cities north of Baghdad.

Even if the president were to order strikes, they would be far more limited in scope than the air campaign conducted during the Iraq war, this official said, because of the relatively small number of militants involved, the degree to which they are dispersed throughout militant-controlled parts of Iraq and fears that using bigger bombs would kill Sunni civilians.

At a meeting with his national security advisers at the White House on Monday evening, the official said, Mr. Obama was presented with a “sliding scale” of military options, which range from supplying the beleaguered Iraqi Army with additional advisers, intelligence and equipment to conducting strikes targeting members of the militant group, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

Much of the emphasis at the meeting, the official said, was on how to gather useful intelligence about the militants. They are not wearing uniforms or sleeping in barracks; and while there may be periodic convoys to strike, there are no columns of troops or vehicles.

Given all the hurdles to effective military action, Mr. Obama is continuing to emphasize a political solution to the crisis, the official said. Administration officials are prodding the Shiite-dominated government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to take tangible steps to heal sectarian rifts with the country’s Sunnis and Kurds.

“This is not primarily a military challenge,” the White House press secretary, Jay Carney, said to reporters on Air Force One, even as he acknowledged that “Iraq needs significantly more help to break the momentum of extremist groups.”

The United States is also exploring diplomatic options with Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran, though a senior official played down the extent of the coordination with Iran, after the deputy secretary of state, William J. Burns, briefly broached the crisis with his Iranian counterpart at nuclear negotiations in Vienna.

The limited scale of any military action may make it easier for Mr. Obama to sell to Congress and the public. The United States already targets suspected terrorists with drones and warplanes, either alone or with the local governments, in Yemen, Pakistan, Somalia and Afghanistan. It provides intelligence and airlift support for strikes in Mali.

Mr. Obama has invited the leaders of the House and Senate for a 3 p.m. meeting in the Oval Office. Taking part will be the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada; the minority leader, Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky; the House speaker, John A. Boehner, and the House minority leader, Representative Nancy Pelosi.

The administration’s deliberations come amid signs that the sweeping militant advances of last week are slowing down, as the fighters reach the more heavily guarded gates of Baghdad.

“We’re seeing indications, certainly, that Iraqi security forces in and around Baghdad are stiffening themselves,” said Rear Adm. John F. Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary. “They’re being assisted by Shia militia members. And it certainly appears as if they have the will to defend the capital.”id signs that the sweeping militant advances of last week are slowing down, as the fighters reach the more heavily guarded gates of Baghdad.

“We’re seeing indications, certainly, that Iraqi security forces in and around Baghdad are stiffening themselves,” said Rear Adm. John F. Kirby, the Pentagon press secretary. “They’re being assisted by Shia militia members. And it certainly appears as if they have the will to defend the capital.”