Fox News' Bill O'Reilly suggested that President Obama raise an anti-terror mercenary army to defeat Islamic State militants and other terrorist groups around the world. But the use of mercenary forces has been outlawed by the U.N. General Assembly and O'Reilly's expert guest denounced his plan on-air as a “terrible,” “immoral” idea.
On the September 22 edition of his show, O'Reilly claimed that the only credible plan to defeat the Islamic State had to include a mercenary force of 25,000 “English-speaking” fighters that would be recruited and trained by the United States. O'Reilly explained that his mercenary army would be comprised of “elite fighters who would be well-paid, well-trained to defeat terrorists all over the world.” O'Reilly also detailed how the mercenary force would be trained, recruited, and funded:
Although the United States did not ratify the agreement, the U.N. prohibits the recruitment, training, use, and financing of mercenaries. During the 72nd plenary meeting in 1989, the U.N. General Assembly agreed to outlaw the use of mercenary forces, as it deemed they violate principles of international law.
O'Reilly's guest, U.S. Naval War College Professor Tom Nichols, Ph.D., a national security expert, also refuted the host's plan, calling it a “terrible,” “immoral” idea. Nichols explained that “it is a morally corrosive idea to try to outsource our national security”:
UPDATE: O'Reilly doubled down on his proposal on the September 23 edition of CBS News' CBS This Morning, claiming such a mercenary force would “take the politics out of it.” He predicted, “It's going to happen. This anti-terror army is going to happen.”
