U.S. strikes have slowed Iraq militants but not weakened them - Pentagon

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A series of U.S. airstrikes since last week has slowed the operational tempo of the Islamic State, the militant group that has seized large parts of northern Iraq, but is unlikely to substantially weaken the group, the Pentagon said on Monday.

"We assess that U.S. airstrikes in northern Iraq have slowed ISIL's operational tempo and temporarily disrupted their advances toward the province of Arbil," which includes the capital of Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region, said Army Lieutenant General William Mayville Jr., a senior Pentagon official.