WASHINGTON: The White House indicated on Wednesday that President Barack Obama had yet to rule out air strikes in Iraq to support government forces against rampant Sunni militants threatening to splinter the country.
Obama, who was due to meet top congressional leaders, including Republican critics, to discuss his strategy, was considering a range of options, his spokesman Jay Carney said.
"The only thing the president has ruled out is sending troops back into combat in Iraq, but he continues to consider other options," Carney said.
"Work is being done that will help us see with more clarity what the options available to the president are," Carney added, when asked to clarify whether Obama had ruled out air strikes.
Earlier, some US media reports suggested that the White House has decided to hold off on "immediate" air strikes by manned planes to check the fast advance of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) across Iraqi territory partly due to a difficulty in identifying appropriate targets.
Iraq also on Wednesday officially requested US air support against the rebels which have occupied some key cities, including Mosul and other strategic targets, during an eight-day offensive.
"Iraq has officially asked Washington to help and to conduct air strikes against terrorist groups," Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told reporters in Saudi Arabia.
Amid a rising political furore in Washington over US strategy in Iraq, Obama was to welcome top congressional leaders to the Oval Office.
He was due to meet Democratic allies Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House minority chief Nancy Pelosi, and Republican foes, House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
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