US says no uptick in violence from Daesh in Syria, Iraq

A US soldier sits atop an armoured vehicle next to a base for the US-led international coalition on the outskirts of Ras Al-Ain town in Syria's Hasakeh province. (File/AFP)

WASHINGTON: The United States has seen no uptick in Daesh's activity in Syria and Iraq, US special representative for Syria James Jeffrey said on Thursday, weeks after a US drone strike killed Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad.
Jeffrey told reporters that US-led coalition operations have been on pause in Iraq as the focus has been on force protection and talks with the Baghdad government on the way forward after Iraq's parliament voted to remove foreign troops.