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Top US diplomat presses Mideast allies for help on fighting Islamic State group militants

Associated Press
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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, third right, speaks with Joseph W. Westphal U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, right, and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, second right, upon his arrival at the Royal Terminal of the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. Kerry arrived in Saudi Arabia, on Thursday to try to persuade officials from across the Mideast and Turkey to put aside longstanding rivalries to more vigorously pursue the Islamic State — and, in doing so, ward off a threat that has put the entire region at risk. (AP Photo/Brendan Smialowski, Pool) (The Associated Press)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrives at the Royal Terminal of the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. Kerry arrived in Saudi Arabia, on Thursday to try to persuade officials from across the Mideast and Turkey to put aside longstanding rivalries to more vigorously pursue the Islamic State — and, in doing so, ward off a threat that has put the entire region at risk. (AP Photo/Brendan Smialowski, Pool) (The Associated Press)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal at the Royal Terminal of the King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014. Kerry arrived in Saudi Arabia, on Thursday to try to persuade officials from across the Mideast and Turkey to put aside longstanding rivalries to more vigorously pursue the Islamic State — and, in doing so, ward off a threat that has put the entire region at risk. (AP Photo/Brendan Smialowski, Pool) (The Associated Press)

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Saudi Arabia to try to pin down Middle Eastern allies on what support they will give to worldwide efforts to beat back the Islamic State militant group that has seized large swaths of Iraq and Syria.

Kerry arrived in the Red Sea city of Jiddah on Thursday and held talks with his Saudi and Bahraini counterparts.

He is expected to meet later in the day with officials from across the Gulf Arab region as well as envoys from Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey to press his case for greater regional support.

The U.S. already has launched more than 150 airstrikes against militants in Iraq over the past month, and has sent military advisers and millions of dollars in humanitarian aid.