Security Council Backs Iraqi Unity Government

The UN Security Council has expressed support for Iraq's new government as it confronts Islamist State (IS) militants.

The 15-member council adopted on September 19 a statement backing the Iraqi unity government at a meeting chaired by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry.

Kerry said Iraq has responded to the IS threat "with a spirit of unity."

He said the IS fighters were "unique in their brutality" and that there is a role for every country to play in the fight against the group, including Iran.

The extremist group controls large swaths in Iraq and neighboring Syria, where activists say IS fighters have seized about 60 Kurdish villages near the Turkish border over the past two days.

With reporting by AFP and Reuters