US says Russian strikes in Syria help Daesh
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (R) talks with U.S. envoy to the coalition against Islamic State, Brett McGurk during a ministerial meeting (Reuters Photo)


The U.S. says Russia's counterterrorism campaign in Syria is actually helping Daesh terrorists.Brett McGurk, the Obama administration's point-man for defeating the group, says a Russian-backed offensive in northern Syria is targeting opposition fighters who were battling Daesh and who now have to face the Syrian military.McGurk tells the House Foreign Affairs Committee, "What Russia's doing is directly enabling Daesh."He says Russia is strengthening the Assad regime, worsening a humanitarian crisis and fueling terrorism.McGurk, who will meet Russian and other diplomats at a conference on Syria later this week, called the developments "totally unacceptable."