Jordan confirms its part in Syria airstrikes

Sep 23, 2014

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Special operations forces participate in the "Eager Lion" military drill at the Gulf of Aqaba, some 330 kilometers south of Amman, Jordan, June 5, 2014. The Jordan-hosted "Eager Lion" international military drill with the participation of 22 countries seeks to strengthen the skills of the Jordanian army and enhance cooperation, the army said. — Special operations forces participate in the “Eager Lion” military drill at the Gulf of Aqaba, some 330 kilometers south of Amman, Jordan, June 5, 2014. The Jordan-hosted “Eager Lion” international military drill with the participation of 22 countries seeks to strengthen the skills of the Jordanian army and enhance cooperation, the army said.

Jordan announced that its warplanes took part in the US-led air operation against the Islamic State (IS) jihadis in northern Syria.

In a statement reported by the official news agency Petra, a source at army headquarters said that the Jordanian air force destroyed “several targets”.

Without mentioning Syria, the statement said that the strikes were aimed at “positions of terrorist groups that are used as platforms to launch operations against Jordanian territory”.

“The armed forces will not hesitate to give a decisive answer to these groups, as they will not tolerate harming border security and Jordanian citizens,” the statement said.

All the aircraft and their crew returned safely to their bases, the statement added.

John Kirby, a spokesman for the US Department of Defense, said late Monday that his country and allied nations had begun the air strikes against the jihadi organisation.

The operation involved five Arab countries — Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — according to official sources quoted by The Washington Post and The New York Times.