Anti-IS coalition gathers for talks
Senior officials from 21 countries are gathering in London to discuss efforts to tackle the jihadist militant group, Islamic State (IS), in Syria and Iraq.
Those taking part in the one-day conference include US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi.
They will discuss how to halt the flow of recruits and money to IS.
They will also look at providing more military help to those fighting on the ground, and boosting humanitarian aid.
BBC diplomatic correspondent James Robbins says ministers will be exploring ways to accelerate and intensify a long-term campaign.
Recent attacks by Islamist militants in France have put even greater political pressure on governments to show decisive results, he adds.
Kerry, who will co-host the talks with UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, said there was "greater determination" than ever to defeat IS.
"Terrorists want to drive us apart, but in fact their actions have had the opposite effect - they're bringing us together," he told reporters before leaving for London.
He had been holding talks in Washington with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini.
Mogherini said the conflict was "not a fight between the West and Islam".
The anti-IS coalition, she added, was "a partnership that unites us all against a phenomenon that is brutally devastating societies all over starting with the Arab countries".
Who are Islamic State (IS)?
• Formed out of al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) in 2013, IS first captured Raqqa in eastern Syria
• It captured broad swathes of Iraq in June, including Mosul, and declared a "caliphate" in areas it controls in Syria and Iraq
• Pursuing an extreme form of Sunni Islam, IS has persecuted non-Muslims such as Yazidis and Christians, as well as Shia Muslims, whom it regards as heretics
• Known for its brutal tactics, including beheadings of soldiers, Western journalists and aid workers
• The CIA says the group could have as many as 31,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria
IS controls large areas of Iraq and Syria, in which it announced the creation of a "caliphate" in June.
Speaking in Iraq before leaving for London, Abadi praised the US-led coalition's air campaign against IS, but said the international community needed to do more to train and equip ground forces.
"We are in this almost on our own," he told the Associated Press. "There is a lot being said and spoken, but very little on the ground."
The countries taking part in Thursday's conference along with the US and UK are Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Iraq, Italy, Jordan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
The US-led coalition has carried out more than 1,000 air strikes since its campaign against IS began in Iraq in August and in Syria in September.
The US says the campaign has been successful but that is likely to stretch on for years.
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