Trump: End of Daesh territory to be announced next week

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - The formal end to Daesh's territorial holdings in Iraq and Syria is likely to be announced as soon as next week, President Donald Trump said Wednesday as U.S. partners fight to rid the terror group from its final bastions in Syria.

The president made the announcement at a convening of the U.S.-led anti-Daesh coalition's foreign ministers in Washington.

"The ISIS caliphate has been decimated," Trump said at the meeting, using another name for Daesh.

He warned, however, that even as the group looses the last remnants of its territories, holdout Daesh operatives still in the region will continue to pose a threat.

"Rest assured we will do what it takes to defeat every ounce, and every last person within the ISIS madness," he said.