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US carries out airstrikes against militants in Iraq, outlines need to tackle IS in Syria

US fighter jets carried out six air raids on Islamic State (IS) positions around the Mosul dam, destroying four vehicles and multiple homemade bomb placements, a spokesperson for the US central command was quoted as saying.

The airstrikes come as the US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said that the IS militants were the biggest threat America had faced in years, reports the BBC.

Speaking at a news conference on Thursday, Hagel said,

“They are beyond just a terrorist group. They marry ideology, a sophistication of strategic and tactical military prowess, they are tremendously well-funded. This is beyond anything that we have seen.”

Commenting on tackling the roots of IS in Syria, Hagel did not rule out military intervention in Syria.

“To your question, can they be defeated without addressing the part of their organisation that resides in Syria? The answer is no. That will have to be addressed on both sides of what is essentially at this point a non-existent border,” said Hagel.

Britain will not fight with Assad against IS in Syria

Britain will not work with the Syrian President to combat Islamic State militants, the British Foreign Secretary told the BBC today.

Speaking on Radio Four on strategies to stop the Islamic State progressing in the middle east, Phillip Hammond said,

“We may very well find that we are fighting, on some occasions, the same people that he is but that doesn’t make us his ally.”

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