Iraqi PM says he supports Russian airstrikes against the Islamic State in Syria

Video by PBS NewsHour

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said he ordered airstrikes in Syria on Wednesday to fight Islamic State militants, a move that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said he would welcome in Iraq, if needed.

The prime minister, in an interview with PBS NewsHour’s Margaret Warner, said the Russian airstrikes would be “beneficial,” as long as they were coordinated with the U.S.-led anti-ISIL coalition.

“Don’t forget Iraq was attacked from across the Syrian border into Iraq by Daesh, by ISIL, and that cost us a lot of human costs in terms of people killed, people being kidnapped, people being enslaved,” he said.

Video by PBS NewsHour

Iraq recently agreed to share intelligence about the Islamic State with Iran, Syria and Russia, all U.S. adversaries. Al-Abadi said Iraq would not share U.S.–furnished intelligence with these countries.