US rules out coordination with Syria as it spies on jihadists

The United States has begun reconnaissance flights over Syria to track Islamic State jihadists but insisted Tuesday it has "no plans" to coordinate with Syria on targeting the militants.
      
Numerous sources said foreign drones had been seen, with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reporting that "non-Syrian spy planes" had on Monday carried out surveillance of IS positions in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor.
      
The surveillance is seen as a precursor to possible US air strikes on jihadist positions, similar to those being carried out in neighbouring Iraq.
      
It comes after Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime said on Monday it was willing to work with the international community, including Washington, to tackle extremist fighters.
      
But American officials said they did not plan to coordinate with Damascus on targeting IS militants in Syria, despite Syrian insistence that any military action on its soil must be discussed in advance.
      
"There are no plans to coordinate with the Assad regime as we consider this terror threat," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said in Washington on Tuesday.
                      
US officials meanwhile said an American fighting for IS was killed over the weekend in Syria, underlining growing concerns about Westerners signing up for extremist groups in the Middle East.
     
The United States had been aware that Douglas McCain, 33, a one-time aspiring rapper and basketball fan from California, was in war-torn Syria, the White House said, confirming his death.
      
McCain, who converted from Christianity to Islam about a decade ago, was killed in fighting against the Al-Nusra Front...