U.S. Airstrikes Target Islamic State in Iraq

Today the United States has launched an airstrike near Baghdad in what defense officials said, and many fear is the start of an expanded action against Islamic State extremists in Iraq. The officials told USA Today the strike was in support of Iraqi security forces south of Baghdad who were under attack.


The strike was described as the first to provide aid for Iraqi forces fighting the Islamic extremist group, as previous actions were conducted to protect U.S. personnel and interests.President Obama last week announced that a broader campaign would be in the quest of trying to "degrade and ultimately destroy'' the Islamic State group, which sometimes is referred to by the acronym ISIS.

Iraqi forces were being fired on by the Islamic State fighters before the air strike destroyed their position, the official said. Since air strikes began last month, the attacks had been centered on Islamic State fighters in northern Iraq. Secretary of State John Kerry met today in Paris with diplomatic leaders from more than a dozen countries as the administration tries to assemble allies to help battle this extremist group.