Israel Urges Global Spies to Pool Resources on IS

Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon on Tuesday called for world intelligence agencies to work together against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

"In order to stop and overcome the Islamic State, we have learnt since 9/11 that there must be cooperation between intelligence agencies from across the free world, a sharing of experience and operational cooperation," he told public radio.

The Islamic State (IS) jihadist group is at the forefront of a sweeping militant assault that has overrun swathes of Iraq and holds significant areas of territory in neighboring Syria.

U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday called for a broad coalition to defeat the IS jihadists and he is to chair a key U.N. Security Council session on the threat on September 24.

Asked about the proposed international coalition, former military intelligence chief Amos Yadlin indicated Israel would likely share its intelligence with its allies.

"The intelligence that we gather in the Middle East -- which deals with threats from Iran, (Lebanon's) Hizbullah, what's happening in Syria, terrorist organizations in Sinai and the Gaza Strip - is of very good quality and we share it with our allies," he told the radio.

Last week, Yaalon adopted a recommendation by the Shin Bet internal security agency and designated both the Islamic State and al-Qaida affiliated Abdullah Azzam Brigades as an "illegal organization" under Israeli law.

The move allows for legal measures to be taken against both organizations as well as anyone found to be supporting or financing them.

Last week, IS released a video showing the beheading of U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff, who also reportedly held Israeli nationality, in the second such execution of a U.S. journalist within a fortnight.