Jordanian Fighter Jets Conduct Fresh Airstrikes
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Move Comes a Day After King Vows to Wage ‘Harsh’ War Against Islamic State Militants.
King Abdullah II, center
The Jordanian air force carried out a new round of airstrikes targeting Islamic State Thursday, two days after the extremist group circulated a video purporting to show the burning alive of a captured Jordanian pilot.
Jordan vowed to exact revenge after the video of First Lt. Muath al-Kasasbeh’s killing surfaced Tuesday. On Wednesday, at dawn, it executed two prisoners convicted of their roles in terrorist attacks, one of whom Islamic State had earlier sought to be released.
The Jordanian military confirmed the new strikes in a statement. Jordan’s King Abdullah II visited with top military leaders Thursday and discussed the details of the action, it said.
The military didn’t say how many strikes it carried out, however, or precisely when they took place or whether they were in Syria or Iraq.
Lt. Kasasbeh was captured by ISIS in December after ejecting from his plane as it crashed over Syria.
Jordan is part of a broad U.S.-led coalition that is fighting the spread of IS, which has taken large swaths of Iraqi and Syrian territory since last summer.
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