Iraq: French fighter jets struck Islamic State targets in Iraq on Thursday, and the United States hit them in Syria, as a U.S.-led coalition to fight the militants gained momentum with an announcement that Britain would join.
The French strikes were a prompt answer to the beheading of a French tourist in Algeria by militants, who said the killing was punishment for Paris' decision last week to become the first European country to join the U.S.-led bombing campaign.
In the United States, FBI Director James Comey said Washington had identified the masked Islamic State militant in videos with a knife at the beheading of two American hostages in recent weeks. Those acts helped galvanize Washington's bombing campaign.
"I'm not going to tell you who I believe it is," Comey told reporters. He said he knew the person's nationality, but declined to give further details.
A European government source familiar with the investigation said the accent indicated the man was from London and likely from a community of immigrants. U.S. and European officials said the principal investigative work identifying the man was conducted by British government agencies.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi, in New York to attend a U.N. meeting, said on Thursday he had credible intelligence that Islamic State networks in Iraq were plotting to attack U.S. and French subway trains.
Senior U.S. officials and French security services said they had no evidence of the specific threat cited by Abadi. But New York Police Commissioner William Bratton said the department boosted its presence on subways and city streets after the Iraqi warning.
City officials added there was no specific, credible threat, and Mayor Bill de Blasio said: "We are convinced New Yorkers are safe."
A spokesman for Washington's metro said there had been no credible threats made against the U.S. capital's rail and bus system.
A senior Iraqi official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: "A full assessment of the veracity of the intelligence and how far the plans have gone into implementation is ongoing.
"We cannot further discuss the nature of the threat in the media," said the official, "except to reaffirm that Daesh (Islamic State) will continue to endanger international peace and security unless it is eradicated."
France had said earlier on Thursday it would boost security on transport and in public places after the killing of French tourist Herve Gourdel by Islamic State sympathizers in Algeria.
