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British warplanes fly over Iraq to strike at IS
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BRITISH warplanes flew their first mission over Iraq yesterday since being given parliamentary authority to strike at Islamic State jihadists, the Ministry of Defence in London said.
Royal Air Force Tornado GR4 combat jets, armed with Paveway IV laser-guided bombs, took off from Britain’s RAF Akrotiri base on Cyprus.
In an operation that began before dawn, the jets were loaded with Paveways before taking off from the Mediterranean island.
British lawmakers on Friday voted overwhelmingly to join the US-led air strikes in northern Iraq.
US bombing in Syria has disrupted the IS group’s lucrative oil-pumping operations, the Pentagon has said.
Six Tornados have been based on Cyprus since last month. They have been conducting reconnaissance missions over Iraq, but their role will now change to striking IS targets following parliament’s vote.
The vote followed a formal request for help from the Iraqi government.
“We can confirm that, following parliamentary approval given yesterday, RAF Tornados continue to fly over Iraq and are now ready to be used in an attack role as and when appropriate targets are identified,” a Ministry of Defence spokesman said.
Parliament’s lower House of Commons voted by a majority of 524 to 43 after the main political parties all approved military action.
IS’s brutal abuses against civilians, rival fighters and hostages, as well as its success in recruiting Western members, have triggered international alarm.
British Prime Minister David Cameron said yesterday that the RAF was there to “play our part.”
“We are one part of a large international coalition,” he said during a visit to Didcot, southern England.
“But the crucial part of that coalition is that it is led by the Iraqi government, the legitimate government of Iraq, and its security forces. We are there to play our part and help deal with this appalling terrorist organization.”
Meanwhile, the coalition widened its air strikes against IS in Syria yesterday as part of “near continuous” raids.
Expanded operations in Syria by the US and its Arab allies came after three more European governments, Britain plus Belgium and Denmark, deployed jets for IS strikes in Iraq, freeing up US air power.
The coalition began its aerial campaign against IS in Syria early Tuesday, aiming to roll back and ultimately crush the group, which has created a proto-state spanning the Syria-Iraq border.
The militants have massacred captured Syrian and Iraqi troops, terrorized minorities and beheaded two American journalists and a British aid worker.
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