Jordan launches new airstrikes after vowing harsh war on ISIS ;
This
Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014 file image posted by the Raqqa Media Center,
which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants
with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a
captured pilot, Mu'ath Al-Kaseasbeh, wearing a white shirt, in Raqqa,
Syria. Photo: APJordanian fighter jets have carried out
new air strikes, the military said on Thursday, a day after the
country's king vowed to wage a "harsh" war against Islamic State
militants who control parts of neighboring Syria and Iraq.The
army statement did not say which country was targeted. Jordan is part
of a US-led military coalition that has bombed ISIS targets in both
countries since last fall, but until now Jordanian warplanes are only
known to have carried out raids in Syria.
King Abdullah
II pledged to step up the fight against the ISIS group after the
militants burned a captive Jordanian pilot in a cage and released a
video of the killing earlier this week. The images have sent waves of
revulsion across the region.
On
Thursday, warplanes roared overhead as the king paid a condolence visit
to the family of the pilot, Lt. Muath al-Kaseasbeh, in his village in
southern Jordan. The king pointed at the planes as he sat next to the
pilot's father.
Safi
al-Kaseasbeh, center, father of slain Jordanian pilot, Lt. Muath
al-Kaseasbeh addresses mourners following funeral at the Kaseasbeh
tribe's gathering divan at their home village of Ai, near Karak, Jordan, Abdullah has said
Jordan's response "will be harsh because this terrorist organization is
not only fighting us, but also fighting Islam and its pure values."
In a statement Wednesday, he pledged to hit the militants "hard in the very center of their strongholds."
In
Washington, leading members of Congress have called for increased U.S.
military assistance to the kingdom. Currently, the United States is
providing Jordan with $1 billion annually in economic and military
assistance.
No comments:
Post a Comment