Blinken pledges to work with Iraq against IS jihadists

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised Friday to work with Iraq to ensure no resurgence of the Islamic State group after Bashar al-Assad's overthrow in neighbouring Syria.

Iraq is keen to prevent any spread of chaos from Syria, where on Sunday Islamist-led rebels toppled the five-decade rule of the Assad dynasty following a lightning offensive. The United States maintains about 2,500 troops in Iraq and 900 more in Syria as part of a campaign to prevent IS resurgence.

President Joe Biden's administration has agreed with Iraq to end the coalition's military presence by September 2025 but stopped short of a complete withdrawal of the US forces. Blinken has pushed for an "inclusive" political process to bring an accountable government to Syria and avoid sectarian bloodletting of the sort seen in Iraq after the fall of Saddam.