Arab League calls for united confrontation with the Islamic State
Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi on Sunday called for a military and political confrontation with Islamic State militants and groups he said threatened the existence of Arab states.
Arabi's remarks, at a meeting of Arab foreign ministers, came as the United States expanded air strikes against the militants in Iraq and sought wider regional backing for its campaign.
"What is needed is a clear decision for a comprehensive confrontation, militarily and politically," Arabi said a day after he and US Secretary of State John Kerry discussed taking action against the jihadist group that controls parts of Syria and Iraq.
An Arab League diplomat told reporters that the ministers were considering adopting a resolution on combating IS and "coordinating with the United States to confront this terrorist organisation".
Arabi criticised infighting between Arab states which he said had led to inaction by the 22-member bloc.
"While some (Arab) states object to allowing the Arab League to intervene in their internal crises, the floodgates are opened to foreign intervention, including militarily," he said.
Arabi, a former foreign minister of Egypt, called for the activation of an Arab defence treaty to allow for military action when needed.
Iraq earlier welcomed US President Barack Obama's plan for an international coalition against the Islamic State as a "strong message of support", after repeatedly calling for aid against the militants.
Obama outlined the plan at a NATO summit Friday for a broad coalition to defeat IS, which led an offensive that overran parts of Iraq in June and also holds significant territory in neighbouring Syria.
Obama's IS 'game plan'
He said Sunday he will make a speech Wednesday to lay out his "game plan" to deal with and ultimately defeat IS, but warned he would not wage another ground war in Iraq.
IS, originally an al-Qaeda affiliate in Iraq that expanded in the Syrian conflict, claims its chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is the rightful leader, or Caliph, of all Muslims.
The group's astonishing rise in Syria and Iraq caught the weak government in Baghdad, and much of the region, off guard.
Arabi said IS posed a threat to the entire region.
"What is happening in Iraq is that the terrorist organisation not only threatens a state's authority, but threatens its very existence and the existence of other states," he said.
Arab countries have participated in Western-led military campaigns in the past, including the first Gulf War and the aerial campaign against former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
The United States launched its first air strikes in Iraq's Sunni Arab heartland, bombing militants near a key dam on the Euphrates River, the US military said on Sunday.
"At the request of the government of Iraq, US military forces attacked ISIL (Islamic State) terrorists near Haditha in Anbar province in support of Iraqi security forces and Sunni tribes protecting the Haditha dam," the US Central Command said in a statement.
"We conducted these strikes to prevent terrorists from further threatening the security of the dam, which remains under control of Iraqi Security Forces, with support from Sunni tribes," Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement.
"The potential loss of control of the dam or a catastrophic failure of the dam - and the flooding that might result - would have threatened US personnel and facilities in and around Baghdad, as well as thousands of Iraqi citizens," he added.
It was the first time that Washington carried out air strikes in support of Sunni Arab tribal militia since it launched its air campaign in Iraq on 8 August.
The move to strike further south comes a day after US President Barack Obama outlined a plan for an international coalition to defeat Islamic State at a NATO summit in Wales.
- See more at: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/us-launches-first-strikes-iraq-sunni-arab-heartland-956963126#sthash.EWFuTId4.dpufThe United States launched its first air strikes in Iraq's Sunni Arab heartland, bombing militants near a key dam on the Euphrates River, the US military said on Sunday.
At the request of the Iraqi government, it was the first time that Washington carried out air strikes in support of Sunni Arab tribal militia since it launched its air campaign in Iraq on 8 August.
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