AMMAN

 King Abdullah II of Jordan on Monday met with John Allen, the U.S. coordinator of an international coalition against the militant Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) group, in capital Amman.  

The Jordanian Royal Court said on Twitter that it would release a statement later on Monday on the content of discussions between Allen and Abdullah II.

Allen had told the official Jordanian news agency earlier that a ground attack on ISIL targets would begin "soon."

He added that the international coalition was preparing 12 Iraqi army brigades – in terms of training and arms – in advance of launching a ground operation.

Allen plans to visit a handful of Asian states to discuss means of raising to 64 the number of coalition member-states.

He denied reports of a change in the coalition's strategy, stressing that the alliance's objective was simply to defeat the militant organization.

King Abdullah II had earlier vowed to launched an "unrelenting war" against the ISIL.

He made the statement only one day after the appearance of a video purportedly showing ISIL militants burning a captured Jordanian pilot alive.

Last year, the ISIL overran vast territories in both Iraq and Syria, prompting the U.S. to form an international coalition to fight it.

In recent months, the coalition has launched numerous aerial strikes against ISIL targets in both Iraq and Syria.