Barbara Boxer talks ISIS threat at LA news conference

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California) held a news conference in Los Angeles on Friday to discuss the increasing threat the U.S. faces with ISIS.

The U.S. is facing a growing threat with the group, which is spreading into Iraq. Some feel it can only be defeated if a coalition of partners confronts it head-on in its base of operations in Syria, and that could mean a new long-term military offensive.

U.S. military operations continue in Iraq. Warplanes pound several ISIS targets as Iraqi and Kurdish security forces retake control of the area around the strategically important Mosul dam.

"No one, no one is safe in a world where ISIS is allowed to terrorize and grow unchecked," Boxer said.

There are new fears ISIS could harm more Americans and others in the west. The Department of Homeland Security and the FBI issued a bulletin to law enforcement to be on alert. While there are no specific threats, officials worry isolated cells or so-called "Lone Wolves" could try to attack targets in the U.S. or abroad.

"I'm not surprised that this threat has been issued at all," Boxer said. "We've been on guard since 9/11. We know there were terrorist, even before al Qaeda morphed into ISIS, that were going to come after us again."

ISIS has taken advantage of unrest in Syria, stretching into Iraq, taking control of numerous towns and the country's second-largest city. Top officials say ISIS cannot be defeated without addressing its haven in Syria. The Obama administration continues to open the door to U.S. airstrikes in that country. But Boxer says U.S. troops should not go into the region.

"It does mean you're going to have boots on the ground. Not American boots on the ground," she said. "I think we need a world strategy to go after ISIS and America has started that with the Kurds, we have boots on the ground in the form of the Kurds and a little bit with the Iraqi military right now, we are coordinating with airstrikes."

Boxer said we cannot sit back and allow the terror to continue. She says the entire world needs to go after ISIS and the United Nations and NATO should do more to address the crisis.