Jordanian bombers strike IS in southern Syria

Jordanian bombers strike IS in southern Syria
Jordan has carried out airstrikes against Islamic State positions in southern Syria, two years after one of its pilots was brutally killed by the militant group.
2 min read
05 February, 2017
The strikes come two years after a Jordanian pilot was burned alive by IS [AFP]

Jordanian warplanes on Friday bombed Islamic State group positions in southern Syria, the army said in a statement released Saturday.

The airstrikes come two years after a Jordanian pilot was captured and killed by the militants, after negotiations for his release ended in failure.

On February 3, 2015, the group released footage showing Maaz al-Kassasbeh being burned alive in a cage, and Friday's strikes came on the second anniversary of the video's release.

"Jordanian Air Force planes, in memory of our martyrs who have fallen in our war against terrorism, on Friday evening targeted various positions of the terrorist gang Daesh in southern Syria," the military said in a statement, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

It said that the strikes against targets including a captured former Syrian army base killed and wounded several IS members and destroyed an arms depot, a car bomb workshop and a barracks.

Jordanian forces used drones and precision-guided munitions in the operation, which was part of the "kingdom's efforts to eradicate the terrorist group", it said.

The kingdom, which is part of the international coalition battling IS in Syria and Iraq, has intensified its strikes since the militant group captured al-Kassasbeh when his plane crashed in Syria in December 2014.