DHAKA: Iran can play a role in confronting and destroying the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, US Secretary of State John Kerry has said.

Addressing a session of the UN Security Council on Iraq on Friday, Kerry said there was a role for nearly every country in the world to defeat what he described as a "militant cult masquerading as a religious movement".

"The coalition required to eliminate ISIL is not only, or even primarily, military in nature," Kerry said. "It must be comprehensive and include close collaboration across multiple lines of effort."

"There is a role for nearly every country in the world to play, including Iran."

Kerry’s comments came as Tehran and six top world powers launched a fresh effort on Friday at narrowing differences on what nuclear concessions Iran must agree to in exchange for full sanctions relief, reports Al-Jazeera.

US officials told the Reuters news agency the basic dilemma was how to keep Iran from hardening its stance in the nuclear talks out of a belief, which officials say would be misguided, that Washington might make nuclear concessions in exchange for help against ISIL.

BDST: 0950 HRS, SEP 20, 2014