The Washington Post reports that Haider al-Abadi, the Iraqi prime minister, has told France24 that he would welcome Russian air strikes on Iraqi territory.

"It’s a possibility; if we get the offer we’ll consider it,” he said in an interview with France 24 television in New York that is due to be broadcast Thursday. “In actual fact, I would welcome it.”

However, airstrikes have not been discussed “yet,” Abadi told the network Wednesday night...

"I think there’s a lot of political bickering at the moment which may make things worse, but if we can direct our resources towards fighting Daesh, that will be a good day for Iraq, Syria, for the region,” he said, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State.