A pair of U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagles fly over northern Iraq after conducting airstrikes in Syria, in this U.S. Air Force handout photo taken early in the morning of September 23, 2014. REUTERS/U.S. Air Force/Senior Airman Matthew Bruch/Handout

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies conducted two dozen strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria on Thursday in the U.S.-backed coalition's latest daily assault on the militant group, according to a U.S. military statement.

Nineteen strikes near nine Iraqi cities hit numerous IS tactical units and fighting positions, as well as a headquarters and improvised explosive device factory, the Combined Joint Task Force leading the operations said in the statement released on Friday.

In Syria, five strikes near three cities hit an Islamic State gas and oil separation plant, among other targets, the statement said.

(Reporting by Washington newsroom; Editing by Alan Crosby)