BERLIN
The airstrikes of the international coalition has significantly undermined ISIL’s main sources of funding, U.S. President Barack Obama’s special envoy said on Sunday.
“Our military offensive has severely reduced the revenues of the group from the oil trade. Daesh is currently having difficulties paying salaries,” retired General John Allen, Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, told German weekly Der Spiegel.
The U.S. envoy referred to the terrorist group as "Daesh" which is the pronunciation of the acronym of ISIL in Arabic.
Since September, the U.S.-led international coalition has carried out more than 1,200 airstrikes against ISIL both in Iraq and Syria, where the group has captured large swaths of land.
The group was controlling several oil facilities in Syria and reportedly sold large amounts of crude oil and oil-based products to fund its terror activities.
The U.S. envoy highlighted the importance of airstrikes so far in stopping the expansion of ISIL in Iraqi territories, and hinted at a possible ground offensive against the group in coming months.
“The ground offensive will come when the time is ripe,” Allen said. “The training and equipment programs for the Iraqi security forces would enable them to fight against Daesh,” he added.
US, Germany and Netherlands are among the countries which have promised providing arms and training for the Iraqi security forces and Kurdish Peshmerga in fight against ISIL.
Allen ruled out any talks with Iran for coordinating efforts in combatting ISIL.
Iran conducted airstrikes into ISIL targets in eastern Iraq early this month but the U.S. military announced that it has not coordinated any operation with Iran.
Iraq has been in a security vacuum since June, when ISIL overran Mosul and declared what it calls a caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria.
The U.S. is leading an international coalition that has carried out numerous airstrikes against ISIL in Iraq and Syria.
www.aa.com.tr/en
