US insists strategy to take on IS working despite recent setbacks in Iraq

The U.S. military command leading the offensive to take on the Islamic State (IS) has sought to play down the recent setbacks suffered by the coalition in Iraq and insisted that its strategy was working, adding that the terror group's victory over a key oil refinery and a government compound were "fleeting gains feeding the militants' propaganda machine."

Marine Brig. Gen. Thomas D. Weidley, chief of staff for Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve (the name of the international campaign fighting the IS), said that they believed that the terror group was losing and remained on the defensive, reported Fox News.

The statement came as IS took over the main government compound in Ramadi and seized substantial control over the Baiji oil refinery, a strategically important prize in the battle for Iraq's future and potential source of millions of dollars in income for the militants.

The Pentagon insisted that when it started the bombing campaign in Iraq in August, 2014, it knew that it could take years to push the jihadists out of the country. The Defense Department admitted that the militants had although conceded ground in recent months but had proven to be "remarkably resilient.