Damascus (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Syrian government has announced that coalition aircraft led by the United States this morning began airstrikes targeting the Islamic State (IS) on Syrian territory. It's the first time following decisions taken in Paris and New York by the approximately 40 coalition nations, from which Syria was excluded.
In any case, Damascus says that the United States government yesterday warned the Syrian ambassador to the UN of the upcoming anti-terrorism actions. The bombing occurred in the area of Raqqa, which has been under jihadist control since 2013, and has reportedly caused dozens of casualties among the militants. The air raids - about 20 in total - was supported by Arab forces from Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE.
Targeted US airstrikes in Iraq began in August, but it has become increasingly clear that the militias had to be hit in Syria, which they used as a refuge. However, air raids will not be enough to defeat the IS, the coalition also needs ground troops. President Barack Obama has ruled out the presence of American troops on the ground, in favor of arming Kurdish peshmerga troops in Iraq, and the so-called "moderate" fighters opposed to Syrian President Bashar Assad. These would include Islamist groups close to al Qaeda and other radical Islamist who share the vision of IS.