Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday in an interview: "I think we are open to any constructive process here that could minimize the violence, hold Iraq together, the integrity of the country and eliminate the presence of outside terrorist forces that are ripping it apart." He said that President Obama was vetting "every option that is available," including drone strikes. Shortly before Kerry made the comments, Islamic fighters captured the northwestern Iraqi town of Tal Afar, the largely Turkmen town that is key their plan for an Islamic caliphate spanning Iraq and Syria.