In Iraq, Hollande says IS battle prevents attacks at home
Supporting military operations against the Islamic State (IS) group is key to preventing terror attacks at home, French President Francois Hollande said on Monday during a visit to Iraq. Hollande had already visited in 2014 and remains the most prominent head of state to come to Iraq since the launch two and half years ago of a US-led coalition against the jihadists. The French president, who is travelling with Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, will also stop in the autonomous northern region of Kurdistan during his one-day visit. "Taking action against terrorism here in Iraq is also preventing acts of terrorism on our own soil," he said at a base of Iraq’s elite Counter-Terrorism Service near Baghdad. France is the second contributor to the US-led coalition that has carried out thousands of air strikes against IS in Iraq and Syria and provided military equipment, training and advice to Iraqi forces. Iraqi forces completely collapsed when IS jihadists took over second city Mosul ...
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