Kerry Tells NBC Iraq Insurgents Are More Extreme Than Al-Qaeda

Secretary of State John Kerry said the insurgents in Iraq are “more extreme than even al- Qaeda” and are a threat to the interests of the U.S. and its allies in an interview on NBC’s “Today” program.

“They represent a threat to every country in the region,” Kerry said in the interview, which was taped yesterday and aired today.

Kerry said the U.S. isn’t coming to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s aid in considering providing help to Iraq to fight the insurgents.

“This isn’t about Maliki,” Kerry said. “What the United States is doing is about Iraq. It is not about Maliki, and nothing the president decides to do is going to be focused specifically on Prime Minister Maliki. It’s going to be focused on the people of Iraq -- Shia, Sunni, Kurd.”