CHILMARK Mass. (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday Iraq had taken "a promising step forward" in designating a new prime minister, vowing to step up support for a new Iraqi government in a widening conflict that his administration had hoped to avoid.
Speaking to reporters in the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard, where he is vacationing with his family, Obama said Iraq had made important strides towards rebuffing fighters from the Islamic State, an al-Qaeda offshoot, since the United States authorized air strikes last week.