UAE F-16 jets strike IS positions

Abu Dhabi, February 10: A squadron of F-16s of the UAE Air Force, stationed at an air base in Jordan, on Tuesday carried out a series of airstrikes on targets of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organisation. The General Command of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces stated that the UAE jet fighters struck their targets and returned safely to their base. The report, however, did not specify where the aqttacks were carried out. Jordan has vowed “revenge” for the killing of its captured air force pilot Moaz Kasasbeh who crashed with his aircraft in December last year in Syria. A video posted on the internet by the IS last month showed the pilot being burnt alive in an iron cage. After Kasasbeh’s plane crashed the UAE had suspended airstrikes as part of the US-led coalition against the IS militants in Iraq and Syria. On Saturday, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al hyan said the F-16 squadron in Jordan displayed the UAE’s support for Jordan’s efforts and effective participation in the intertiol coalition to battle the IS. (IANS)