As the Islamic State fighters continue their violent assault in areas of Iraq and Syria, the White House has no plan in place to eliminate the extremists.

In response to the growing threat of IS, President Barack Obama said, “we don’t have a strategy yet,” on Thursday.

The Obama administration is against sending American ground forces to Syria, to avoid another war like those in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A spokesperson for the Pentagon also said that airstrikes alone will not eliminate the threat of IS. In addition, it may be impossible for the U.S. to avoid placing troops in Syria because for airstrikes to be effective, the U.S. will need to gather more intelligence about IS fighters.

Meanwhile, in the northern Iraqi city of Amirli members of the Shiite Turkmen minority are surrounded by IS militants.

CCTV America’s Jim Spellman reports.

MORE ISLAMIC STATE COVERAGE ON CCTV AMERICA.