Amman launches Operation "Martyr Moaz" against Islamic State
Amman (AsiaNews) - Jordan has announced that it has carried out several air raids bombing Islamic State positions in response to the execution of one of its Airforce pilots, burned alive by the jihadist group.
The operation, called "Martyr Moaz" after the
F16 pilot captured
and burned alive by the IS, hit "training camps, arms and
ammunition depots". The operation will continue until "the
eradication" of the IS.
The official did not specify the places affected. But some witnesses say they
heard King Abdallah notify the man's father that the raid took place in the
area of Raqqa, Syria. Security sources said the raids hit targets in the province
of Deir al-Zor and Raqqa.
Yesterday, the king went to Karak, 120km from Amman to personally
express his condolences to the family of Moaz al Kassasbeh, whom he received in
a large tent erected for the occasion (See Photo).
The atrocious manner of the pilot's killing has served to coalesce Jordanian
society, garner popular support for and give legitimacy to the Kingdom's participation
in the anti-jihadist fight. Today demonstrations of solidarity for the man's
family will be held and also to demand merciless vengeance for IS militants.
As soon as the news and the gruesome video of the
Kassasbeh execution spread, King Abdullah said that "the response of
Jordan and his army will be severe."
Two days ago, the king cut short his visit to the United States, where he was
also to participate yesterday in a meeting with religious and world leaders in
Washington. In his absence, the Jordanian ambassador Alia Bouran read his
speech.
In it Abdallah says that the war waged by the terrorists of the Islamic State has the primary objective to target the Muslim community in the Middle East, to later expand to the whole world. "These criminals aim to stamp out life and rights everywhere. Their hate and murder has reached Asia, Europe, Africa, America and Australia. By the brutal killing of their prisoners and captives, they seek to hold families across the world hostage to their cruelty".
After thanking Pope Francis for his visit to the Holy
Land and his condemnation of the abuse of the name of God in the exercise of
violence, Abdallah claims for his family and for the Middle East, the presence
of an Islam that teaches a tradition of "service, moral courage, justice, and
brotherhood". With "pain and outrage," he recalls the attacks against
Christians and other minorities in Iraq and Syria, many of which are accepted
as refugees in Jordan itself.
"This - he added - is
an offense against humanity as well as Islam. Arab
Christians are an integral part of our region's past, present and future".
The King noted that
today all over the Islamic world "... men and women are putting themselves
on the line to fight hatred, injustice, sectarianism, sedition (fitnah) and
cruelty. They are working for development, inclusion, human rights,
opportunities for women and youth, healthy children, and global welfare. They
are teaching young people the truth about our faith, and giving them the tools
they need for positive lives".
He also warned against a blind Islamophobia:
"[it is an evil and a danger not only to Muslims, but to all people. It
plays right into the hands of murderers and thugs and undermines unity when our
world needs it most".
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10/07/2021 12:00
14/04/2016 09:32
