Nations gather in Rome to discuss anti-Islamic State push, Libya
Nearly two dozen nations gather on February 2 to plot their fight against the Islamic State militant group in Syria and Iraq and how to choke off its rise in Libya.
The meeting takes place as talks have begun in Geneva to try to end the five-year Syrian civil war, which has killed at least 250,000 people, driven more than 10 million from their homes and drawn in the United States and Russia on opposite sides.
Twenty-three nations from the wider Global Coalition to Counter ISIL will review their efforts to regain Syrian and Iraqi territory from the jihadist group and to discuss ways to curb its wider influence, notably in Libya.
While Washington has long said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has lost the legitimacy to lead, it has made clear that its first priority is to try to rein in militants from the Islamic State group, which is also known as ISIL.
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Meeting on February 2 will cover stabilizing areas such as the Iraqi city of Tikrit, which has been wrested from the group, as well as broader efforts to undercut its finances, stem the flow of foreign fighters and counter its messaging, officials said.
