Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has accused the U.S.-led coalition of helping the IS group expand in Syria and recruit more militants.
Assad praised Russia's air strikes in Syria, saying they had helped to shrink IS. Russia has been accused of targeting rebels who are not IS militants in Syria.
He also accused the West of supporting "terrorists" in Syria with arms.
Syrian state news site SANA has published a full transcript of Assad's interview with a Czech television station.
Assad's comments on the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition's bombing IS targets in Syria:
Assad: According to the facts, since the beginning of that coalition, if you want to talk about facts not opinions, ISIS has expanded, and their recruits from around the world have increased. While since the participation of the Russians in the same so-called fight against terrorism, ISIS has been shrinking and Al Nusra of course and other terrorist groups. So, this is reality. The facts are telling.
Assad also reiterated an argument he has made in earlier interviews: that air strikes are not enough to defeat "terrorists" and that the Syrian Army is effective because it is able to target them on the ground:
Assad: You cannot kill terrorists or destroy terrorism from the air, you cannot, it is almost impossible, the Americans have been trying this in Afghanistan for how long? More than 12 or 13 years. Did they achieve anything? Nothing. Terrorism is still strong in Afghanistan. So you cannot. You need cooperation from within that country, any power. The major power in Syria is the Syrian army and of course the government...
Assad also commented on the downing of the Russian Su-24 jet by Turkey near the Syrian border:
Assad:...I think it has shown the relentlessness of Erdogan who let us say lost his nerves just because the Russian intervention has changed the balance on the ground. So, the failure of Erdogan in Syria, the failure of his terrorist groups means his political demise, so he wanted to do anything in order to put obstacles in front of any success. So, he did it, but I do not think it will change any balance. The war against terrorism is continuing. The Russian supportive participation is going to be stronger, it is strong anyway, and I think there is no way back on that regard, whether he does it again, this way or another way.
MPs in the UK are set to vote later today on whether to back air strikes in Syria against the IS group.
The UK is already a member of the U.S.-led anti-IS coalition in Iraq.
British Prime Minister David Cameron says that IS is a threat to Britain and is expected to win parliamentary approval for the UK to extend its air strikes against IS to Syria.
Before the vote there will be a 10 hour debate.
Russian news site Gazeta.ru has shared photographs of the funeral of Oleg Peshkov, the pilot killed after his Su-24 jet was downed by Turkey near the Syrian border last week.
IS Setting Its Eyes On Libya As Potential 'Retreat Zone'
The IS group sees Libya as a "potential retreat and operational zone" for IS militants who cannot reach Syria, a new United Nations report warns.
IS's central command in Syria and Iraq views Libya as the best place for the militant group to expand its "caliphate" -- IS's term for the lands under its control -- the report adds, quoting IS's commander in the region, Abu al-Mughirah al-Qahtani, as saying that Libya has a "great importance because it is in Africa and south of Europe."
Around 3,500 Libyans left the country to join groups in Syria and around 800 of those have returned to join IS's newly formed affiliate in Libya, the report says.
Erdogan: Russian Sanctions Are 'Emotional' & Turkey Won't Retaliate
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed that his country will not retaliate against Russia's sanctions imposed after the downing of a Russian Su-24 war plane near the Syrian border, AFP reports.
Russia's actions were "emotional" and not in line with "state dignity," Erdogan said in an interview with Turkish reporters aboard his presidential plane.
"(Russia) is our strategic partner, we will continue to provide them with products including food...Turkey in this regard retains its nobility. We are not using the same language as them... We are expecting them to change their language," Erdogan said.
Erdogan added that he was not concerned about the risk of Russia cutting natural gas exports to Turkey, saying that his nation was "accustomed to hardship" and that Turkey had other suppliers as well as Russia.
IS Advances In Syria's North Aleppo
IS militants have seized Kafrah, a village north of the Syrian city of Aleppo near the Turkish border, and have advanced in nearby areas amid fierce clashes with rebel groups, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a Britain-based group that tracks the war in Syria.
SOHR reported this morning that "fierce clashes are raging in the area around the village of Kafrah and other nearby areas between IS and rebel factions."
Activists also reported today that IS had entered Kafrah, NOW Media reports.
As NOW Media notes, Kafrah is near territory that Turkey wants to turn into a "safe zone" that is free not only of IS but also of the Kurdish militia, the Peoples Protection Units (YPG).
The capture of Kafrah opens the way for IS to advance on the contested border town of Azaz.
Kerry: Iraq Fully Briefed On Plans To Deploy U.S. Special Forces
The Iraqi government was fully briefed on plans by the United States to deploy American special forces to Iraq and the two governments will consult closely on where they will go and what they will do, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said, Reuters reports.
AFP's Danny Kemp has this from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on the British Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to ask for a vote on whether the UK should join the United States, France and others in bombing IS in Syria.
Far-Right MPs Call To Ban Turkish Delight From State Duma Cafeteria
MPs from the far-right Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) are calling on the cafeteria of the State Duma to stop selling Turkish candy, LDPR member Andrey Svintsov told reporters today.
Svintsov showed reporters a box of Turkish candy that he said he purchased in the cafeteria, saying that an LDPR voter had approached his colleagues saying that he had bought a box of the same candy and had "felt sick" after eating them.
"Even in the State Duma they are selling candy that doesn't have any markings on it, it's not clear where it comes from. We're sending this box today to an expert and if it turns out that it contains harmful substances we're going to ask the government to add confectionary to the list of banned imports from Turkey," Svintsov said.
Svintsov added that he was also going to ask the State Duma to stop selling the candy.
Russia's Defense Ministry is set to hold a press conference for Russian and international journalists at 15.00 Moscow time (13.00 GMT) titled "Russia's Military Forces in the War On International Terrorism. New Information."