By
Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent, and Peter Foster in Washington
9:05PM BST 11 Sep 2014
A coalition of 10 Arab states threw their support behind Barack Obama’s pledge to destroy the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (Isil) movement in Iraq and Syria on Thursday.
In a welcome boost to US plans for defeating the militant Islamist group, regional powers including Saudi Arabia and Jordan pledged to “do their share” in the battle.
The announcement in Saudi Arabia was carefully choreographed, coming hours after the president told the American people that he would expand US air strikes against the militants, promising that Isil would ultimately be “vanquished from the Earth”.
As Mr Obama marked the anniversary of the September 11 attacks with a moment of silence at the White House, the 10 regional allies — which also included Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — issued their statement after a meeting in Jeddah with John Kerry, the US secretary of state.
They promised that they would join in “the comprehensive fight” against Isil, including choking off funds and fighters to the group.