Outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in an interview on Friday the United States might eventually need to send **n-combat ground troops to Iraq to help turn back Islamic State forces. Hagel, who an**unced his resignation under pressure in **vember, told CNN all options must be considered in Iraq, including sending troops for **n-combat roles such as gathering intelligence and locating Islamic State targets. Whether we get there or **t, I don't k**w." Hagel's comments echoed testimony by General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to Congress last fall when he said U.S. troops might have to take a larger role on the ground in Iraq.