Several Arab countries offer to join air campaign on ISIL: US officials

PARIS // Several Arab countries have offered to join the United States in air strikes against ISIL targets, US officials said.
The officials declined to identify which countries made the offers. But they said they were under consideration as the United States begins to identify country roles in its emerging coalition against the militants, who have captured large areas of Iraq and Syria.
The addition of Arab fighter jets could strengthen the credibility of the American-led campaign in a region sceptical of how far Washington will commit to a conflict in which nearly every country has a stake.
"I don't want to leave you with the impression that these Arab members haven't offered to do air strikes because several of them have," a senior US State Department official said on Sunday.
So far, France has been the only country to publicly offer to the join US air strikes on ISIL targets, although limiting these to Iraq.
Britain, Washington's main ally in 2003, has sent mixed messages. It has stressed the West should not go over the heads of regional powers nor neglect the importance of forming an inclusive government in Iraq.
Yesterday, Australia said they would use the UAE as a base for eight military aircraft and 600 personnel as part of the international coalition in a bid to counter the ISIL terrorist threat.
The US comments come a day after ISIL stirred fresh outrage with a video purporting to show the beheading of British aid worker David Haines. British prime minister David Cameron called it "a despicable and appalling murder," and vowed to bring the killers to justice.
US Secretary of State John Kerry will meet British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond during a conference on Iraq in Paris on Monday. "I am sure that will be a topic of discussion," a second senior US State Department official said on condition of anonymity, referring to the beheading.
The conference brings Iraqi authorities together with 15 to 20 international players. It comes ahead of a UN Security Council ministerial meeting on September 19 and a heads of state meeting at the UN General Assembly later this month.
On Thursday, Mr Kerry won backing for a "coordinated military campaign" from the GCC, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon.
* Reuters