KABUL, Afghanistan (June 14, 2012) - U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Sean MacFarland, operations deputy chief of staff for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), speaks during a ceremony commemorating the U.S. Army's 237th birthday.

KABUL, Afghanistan (June 14, 2012) - U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Sean MacFarland, operations deputy chief of staff for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), speaks during a ceremony commemorating the U.S. Army's 237th birthday. Photo by Lt. j. g. Joe Painter

Meet the New Army General in Charge of the ISIS War

Army Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland is now commanding the counter-ISIS campaign; Officials name Nagata’s successor at SOCOM Central.

The U.S. military has a new top commander for the fight against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria, and the region is about to get a new special operations commander.

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter last month quietly put Army Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland in charge of the coalition fighting ISIS in Iraq and Syria. Carter announced the appointment Friday, following a spate of criticism that the Obama administration’s counter-ISIS campaign lacked coordinated leadership as it stretched across agencies also including the White House, State Department, intelligence community.

“Rather than three generals responsible for different aspects of the campaign, as had been the case, I have empowered Lt. Gen. MacFarland as the single commander of counter-ISIL activities in both Iraq and Syria,” Carter said. “His efforts will be critical in the coming months as we continue to provide support for capable partners fighting on the front lines.”

Additionally, Army Maj. Gen. Darsie Rogers will replace Maj. Gen. Michael Nagata as commander of U.S. special operations forces in the Middle East, according to a military official. Nagata oversaw the failed Obama administration effort to train Syrian rebels to fight ISIS. Nagata, who is highly regarded among senior brass, is rumored to be in line for a senior position at National Counterterrorism Center in Washington, a post that would earn him a third star if confirmed by the Senate.  

Rogers, a Green Beret, was previously commander of the Army’s 1st Special Forces Command at Fort Bragg, a position he left in August. He has commanded Special Forces in Iraq numerous times of the past decade. Rogers will take command of U.S. Special Operations Command Central, or SOCCENT, which is located at MacDill Air Force Base, in Tampa, and co-located with U.S. Central Command, which overseas operations in the Middle East.  

MacFarland replaces Lt. Gen. James Terry, who will continue serving as the head of U.S. Army Central, or USARCENT, which commands Army forces in the Middle East.

An Irish Catholic from Upstate New York, MacFarland is a West Point graduate and is also the commanding general of III Corps and Fort Hood, in Texas, a position he holds concurrent to his new position as commander for the Combined Joint Task Force for Operation Inherent Resolve. But he is best known, perhaps, for his efforts as a colonel to secure the city of Ramadi in 2007 and foster the Sunni Awakening. "I was given very broad guidance," MacFarland told USA Today in 2007. "Fix Ramadi, but don't destroy it. Don't do a Fallujah."  

MacFarland's established 18 combat outposts in and around Ramadi. He then pursued partnerships with various Sunni tribal sheiks, which eventually resulted in alliance of more than 50 sheiks by the time MacFarland's brigade left Iraq, and eventually reached more than 200 sheiks, according to USA Today.

Ramadi fell to ISIS earlier this year. Militants have surrounded the city with improvised explosive devices preventing Iraqi soldiers from recapturing the city, said Army Col. Steven Warren, spokesman for the counter-ISIS mission, on Oct. 1.

“[T]hey're using these IEDs almost as landmines, to create these minefields, which they can then cover with fire,” Warren said.

Friday, Carter said: “We're watching recent military advances in Baiji and around Ramadi, which suggest that Iraqi forces may be regaining the initiative.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.