Iraqi F-16 jets kill 44 Islamic State terrorists in Syria
Iraqi F16 fighter jet. File photo.
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The Iraqi army said on Tuesday that its jet fighters conducted several airstrikes against the Islamic State group in Syria’s Deir el-Zour province, killing 40 terrorists.
Iraqi F-16 jets carried out a successful airstrike that targeted a hideout of the Islamic State group in al-Susah city in Deir al-Zour, leaving 30 terrorists dead, Dijlah TV channel quoted the Joint Operations Command as saying in a statement.
Another air raid destroyed a hideout in the city, housing 14 Islamic State fighters, the statement said.
The operation resulted in the complete destruction of the Islamic State targets, the statement added.
In April, former Iraqi prime minister Haider al-Abadi denied intentions to interfere in Syrian affairs, saying that the airstrikes against Islamic State will continue.
Iraq had previously announced launching airstrikes against IS locations in Syria. This came after Abadi said security troops will follow IS militants in the whole region, not only in Iraq.
Thousands of Islamic State militants as well as Iraqi civilians were killed since a government campaign, backed by paramilitary troops and a U.S.-led international coalition, was launched in October 2016 to fight the militant group, which declared a self-styled “caliphate” from Mosul in June 2014.