US airstrikes targeted ISIL terrorists near Haditha Dam: Obama

In a letter to members of Congress on Monday, Obama said US aircraft targeted ISIL militants near the Haditha Dam on the Euphrates River in Anbar province.

The US president added that the air assault was "in support of Iraqi forces in their efforts to retain control of and defend this critical infrastructure site."

According to the White House, the US airstrikes were meant to beat back the terrorists who have been trying to capture key dams across the country, including the Haditha Dam, which remains in control of the Iraqi forces. The dam is the second largest hydroelectric contributor to Iraq's power grid.

US jets and drones also recently carried out multiple strikes on the militants near the Mosul Dam on the Tigris River to protect it from ISIL, according to a Pentagon statement.

In recent weeks, manned and unmanned US aircraft have flown surveillance flights and targeted ISIL strongholds.

Washington has deployed over hundreds of troops to Iraq to bolster security for American diplomats and provide advice to Iraqi government forces fighting the militants.

ISIL controls large parts of Syria's northern territory. The group sent its fighters into neighboring Iraq in June, quickly seizing large swaths of land straddling the border between the two countries.

HK