[WATCH] US air strikes target Islamic State in Syria

US strikes against ISIL • USS Arleigh Burke launches Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles

The U.S. military, along with Arab allies, launched the first airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria, opening a new front in the fight against the militant group, defence officials said.

Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE took part in the bombing raids, US media reported, in a show of Arab solidarity against the Isil group that has rampaged through Syria and Iraq.

The attack, carried out by warplanes dropping bombs and ships firing cruise missiles, hit about 20 ISIL targets, including headquarters buildings for the militants who have based their movement in Syria.

The wave of strikes came less than two weeks after President Obama warned that he had approved an expansion of the campaign against the Islamic State group to include action in Syria.