The US Senate approved on Friday the annual defense budget of $496 billion raising the bill of US wars abroad to $64 billion including the US-led military campaign against Islamic State (IS). The new bill, passed by 89 votes to 11, authorizes the training and equipping of Iraqi and Kurdish forces. In addition to the moderate Syrian rebel fighters for two years. US has declared war on IS earlier this year to eliminate the terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria and the region. The destruction of IS targets in Syria and Iraq helped in limiting the terrorist group's ability to conduct terrorist operations. The US-led coalition including Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Netherlands and the United Kingdom has launched more than 600 air strikes against IS militant targets in Iraq since last August. Moreover, the coalition including the U.S., Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates have also carried out almost 500 attacks on IS in Syria since last September.
