US says ISIS foreign fighter ranks drop to 25,000

With a map of Iraq and Syria at right, Brett McGurk, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016. AP Photo

WASHINGTON, United States—A top Obama administration official says the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) group’s ranks of foreign fighters have dropped to about 25,000 from a peak of 35,000.

Brett McGurk is the U.S. special envoy for the global coalition to counter ISIS. He says fighters from 120 countries have joined the group.

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McGurk is touting progress in the U.S.-led effort to defeat ISIS. He says the extremist group is under pressure and has cut fighters’ salaries by about half.

McGurk says President Barack Obama will get an update on diplomatic and political efforts Thursday at the State Department.

The meeting comes after the U.S. and Russia announced a cease-fire agreement for Syria to take effect later this week. McGurk says the U.S. is under no illusions about how difficult implementing the cease-fire will be.

READ: US, Russia announce Syria ceasefire from Saturday