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Gen. Martin Dempsey urges patience in fight against ISIS

During a visit to Baghdad, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, said that Iraqi forces sometimes show up "under-strength" and "without proper equipment
Gen. Martin Dempsey raises concern over Iraq's ability to fight ISIS 02:35

BAGHDAD -- Even with thousands of Iraqi fighters on the outskirts of Tikrit - progress against ISIS is slow. Iraqi forces claim they've cut supply routes to the militants, yet ISIS is still in control of the city.

Iraqi forces struggling to break ISIS grip on Tikrit 02:21

In Baghdad Monday, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, urged patience in the fight against ISIS. But on board a French aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf on Sunday, Dempsey voiced his frustration with Iraqi forces.

"We've got trainers and advisers that are waiting for some of the Iraqi units to show up," Dempsey said. "And when they've shown up -- a handful of them -- they've shown up under-strength and sometimes without the proper equipment."

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U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey (L) speaks during a news conference with Iraq's Defence Minister Khaled al-Obeidi in Baghdad March 9, 2015. Dempsey, the top U.S. military officer, said on Monday that Islamic State would be defeated, as he visited Baghdad during an offensive against the radical insurgents which has seen Washington's military role overshadowed by Iran. REUTERS/Ahmed Saad
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Raad Saleh Ateia and his wife Quraish describe how ISIS took their son CBS News

Raad Saleh Ateia and his wife Quraish are desperate for any sign of progress in Tikrit. They fled their home in the city just three days after ISIS captured it in June.

"Armed men from ISIS took our son Omar away," Quraish told us. "I chased after the car, and I was crying because I couldn't keep up."

Raad told us ISIS interrogated 20-year-old Omar, and accused him of drinking alcohol. The militants later released him - but Omar's still too frightened of ISIS to appear on camera.

"Do you think that Iraq will ever be free of ISIS?" I asked Quraish.

"God willing," she answered. "We want everyone to go home to their families."

General Dempsey said he saw no need for any more U.S. military advisers in Iraq. There are already more than 2,500 of them on the ground. And he also made it clear that a dramatic escalation in American-led airstrikes - or carpet bombing Iraq as he described it - would risk many more civilian casualties.

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