US Secretary of State John Kerry has announced that Egypt has a key role to play in countering Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq and Syria.
Kerry, who is on trip to the Middle East to enlist broader support for a coalition to fight the Islamist threat from the IS, has received backing of atleast 10 Arab states so far including Egypt. However, the US Secretary of State has ruled out Iran joining the international coalition, the BBC reported.
Acknowledging Egypt's reputation as "an intellectual and cultural capital of the Muslim world, Kerry stated that Cairo had a "critical role to play in publicly renouncing the ideology that IS disseminates".
Kerry also offered US support to Egypt in its fight against Islamist militants in the Sinai region after his talks with Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi and Egyptian President Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.