Interview: One of the key players in this battle is the leader of the autonomous Kurdistan region of northern Iraq, Masoud Barzani, whose peshmerga troops are fighting alongside Iraqi forces. Barzani spoke to The Washington Post’s Lally Weymouth in Davos, Switzerland, this past week at the World Economic Forum. – Washington Post
Islamic State has ramped up sales of oil and gas to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, U.S. and European officials said, providing vital fuel to the government in return for desperately needed cash. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)