Hollande Warns of Global IS Threat

French President Francois Hollande tells a Paris summit that the global threat posed by Islamic State must meet a global response. 

A summit of international foreign ministers pledged to help Iraq fight Islamic State (IS) militants "by all means necessary".

A joint statement by the 30 countries taking part in the Paris talks said support would include "appropriate military assistance".

The talks had been called to agree a strategy to combat the group.

The conference followed a whirlwind tour of the Middle East by US Secretary of State John Kerry.

Mr Kerry, who attended the summit, has been drumming up support for a plan of action unveiled by President Barack Obama last week.

The murder of British aid worker David Haines by IS militants, shown in a video released by the group on Saturday, has added momentum to the plans, says the BBC's Lucy Williamson in Paris.

Opening the summit, French President Francois Hollande said the threat posed by IS militants needed a global response.

"The terrorist threat is global and the response must be global," he said. "There is no time to lose.''

Islamic State controls large parts of Iraq and Syria. The CIA estimates that the group could have as many as 30,000 fighters in the region.

Iraqi President Fuad Masum, who co-hosted the conference with Mr Hollande, said the international community must pursue the jihadists "quickly".

"If this intervention and support to Iraq is late, that means that Islamic State could occupy more territory and the threat it poses will be even bigger," he said.

BBC