by WorldTribune Staff, February 5, 2017
Jordan on Feb. 3 carried out airstrikes on Islamic State (ISIS) targets in southern Syria.
The Jordanian army confirmed the attacks targeted an arms depot, a facility in which car bombs were being made, and a barracks used to house ISIS jihadists.
The attack in southern Syria occurred just days after Jordan’s King Abdullah, a close U.S. ally, met in Washington with Defense Secretary James “Mad Dog” Mattis and Vice President Mike Pence. The king also met with President Donald Trump on Feb. 2 at the National Prayer Breakfast.
The attack, which included the use of drones and precision-guided munitions, killed an unspecified number pf the terror group’s members and destroyed several vehicles, Jordan’s official Petra news agency said.
In December, ISIS claimed responsibility for a shooting attack in Jordan that killed 10 people, including a Canadian tourist. The shootings took place in Karak, a tourist destination known for one of the biggest Crusader castles in the region, around 120 kilometers (70 miles) south of the capital Amman.
King Abdullah II pledged to step up the fight against ISIS in 2015, after jihadists burned a captive Jordanian pilot in a cage and released a video of the killing.