WASHINGTON – More than ten thousand Islamic State fighters have been killed since an international coalition began a campaign against the group in Iraq and Syria, the US says.
Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken told an international news agency that the coalition had seen “a lot of losses” within IS in the past nine months.
He spoke after the coalition met in Paris to discuss its strategy in Iraq.
Representatives backed Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s plan to retake the city of Ramadi, whose capture by IS last month he described as a failure for the international community.
They also called for the “speedy launch” of efforts to end the conflict in Syria.
In his interview with France Inter on Wednesday, Mr. Blinken insisted that the coalition campaign had not been a failure.
“There has been important progress, but equally Daesh remains very resilient and capable of taking the initiative,” he said, using a pejorative term for the group based on the Arabic acronym of its former name.
Mr. Blinken said IS now controlled 25% less territory in Iraq than it did when coalition air strikes began in August 2014, and that it had lost significant numbers of men and material.
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