image source, Getty
F22 fighter jets are believed to be US participants in the attack.
Jordan acknowledged that it is participating in the bombardments that the United States and its allies launched on Tuesday against targets of the group calling itself the Islamic State in Sira.
The country’s information minister, Mohamed al-Momani, said the details of the Jordanian intervention would be explained in due course by the armed forces.
And he added: “Our participation is consistent with our position, it is to ensure the stability and security of our country and our borders.”
At the beginning of the operation, military sources had indicated to the BBC that several Arab states were participating in the campaign.
Jordan is the first to confirm its participation. The other countries included are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar (the latter with logistical support).
On September 11, those countries signed a communiqué pledging to fight the Islamic State.
The decision to attack ISIL for the first time in Syria (the US has already attacked the group in Iraq) was made by General Lloyd Austin, head of the US Central Command “under the authorization given by Commander in chief,” said US Rear Adm. John Kirby.
Syria has not formally authorized the attacks on its territory.
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said last month that the US must coordinate with Damascus before launching an attack.
“Anything else will be considered an assault,” he added.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH), which has people on the ground, says more than 20 IS fighters have been killed in attacks on the group’s positions in Raqqa, a major base for the jihadist group in eastern Syria.
On its Facebook page, the OSDH also points out that coalition planes launched no less than 20 attacks in and around that city.
Islamic State controls large parts of Syria and Iraq, on which it has imposed an extreme version of Islam and declared the establishment of a caliphate.
According to the CIA, the group has up to 31,000 fighters in those countries.
Islamic State has executed prisoner-taking soldiers, aid workers and journalists and has threatened mass killings of Iraqi religious minorities.
