The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee has voted to authorize President Barack Obama's war against the Islamic State group. It was Congress' first vote to explicitly authorize the US war against IS. The vote Thursday was 10-8. In the U.S. battle against the Islamic militants, Obama has been relying on congressional authorizations that former President George W. Bush used to justify military action after Sept. 11, 2001. On Tuesday, Secretary of State John Kerry said a new authorization should not limit U.S. military action to Iraq and Syria or prevent the president from deploying ground troops if he later deems them necessary. The committee approved a resolution authored by its Democratic chairman Sen. Robert Menendez that would limit operations to three years and allow ground forces only in certain circumstances. http://english.ahram.org.eg/News/117726.aspx
