WASHINGTON

The U.S. is sending more special operation forces to Iraq to help Kurdish peshmerga forces and conduct raids in Syria, the head of American defense said Tuesday.

“These special operators will over time be able to conduct raids, free hostages, gather intelligence, and capture ISIL leaders,” defense chief Ashton Carter told a House Armed Services Committee.

“The raids in Iraq will be done at the invitation of the Iraqi government and focused on defending its borders and building the ISF's own capacity,” he said referring to the Iraqi Security Forces. “This force will also be in a position to conduct unilateral operations into Syria.”

Carter did not provide a timetable for the deployment.

U.S. special operation forces in October conducted a raid on a Daesh prison in Iraq to free 70 hostages, including Iraqi forces. A U.S. soldier was killed during the operation.

The White House also ordered the deployment of about 50 special operation forces to Syria to assist and advise local forces there, including the Kurdish People’s Union Party (PYD).

“We’re at war,” Carter said. “Tens of thousands of U.S. personnel are operating in the broader Middle East region, and more are on the way.”

He noted that about 3,500 U.S. troops are operating at six locations in Iraq in support of the ISF.

He added that the U.S. is prepared to do more as “Iraq shows capability and motivation in the counter-ISIL fight and in resolving its political divisions.”

Carter also said U.S.-led coalition aircraft have destroyed nearly 400 tankers carrying oil from Daesh-controlled oil facilities.