ISIS News Today 2015: France Fires First Airstrikes on ISIS in Syria
In a statement from the French president's office, it was reported that the French military has launched its first airstrikes against Islamic State forces in Syria on Sunday.
France announced earlier this month that it would be strengthening its aerial campaign against ISIS in Iraq. The efforts to help destroy the extremist group started about a year ago, which included plans of battling the jihadists' posts in Syria.
According to the statement, the attacks carried out on Syria were made possible after air surveillance teams gathered intelligence reports all over Syria in the past two weeks.
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"Our country confirms its firm commitment to the fight against the terrorist threat Daesh (the Arabic acronym for ISIS). We will strike whenever our national security is at stake," the statement said.
During the U.N. General Assembly held in New York City, President Francois Hollande referred to the extremists as a "threat to our country."
He further explained how the French forces were able to successfully claim the area where the airstrikes were directed. "We reached our goal and the whole training camp was destroyed," he said.
While the mission was led by the French fighters, the U.S.-led coalition group helped in the attack that saw the deployment of six aircrafts.
Aside from sharing his country's success in its mission, Hollande blamed Syria's president for more than a decade, Bashar al-Assad, for the Syrian migrant crisis. He said Bashar al-Assad is still to blame though he admitted that Daesh has been committing "horrible acts.
This year, France has received multiple attacks from ISIS. In January, 17 people were killed in a series of attacks in Paris, including the shooting deaths of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo's staff.
According to CNN, authorities reported in June that a man decapitated his boss and displayed the severed head with Islamist banners, finally ending the assault when he set off an explosion in a factory.
And just last month, three Americans put their lives at risk to take down a suspected terrorist gunman who tried to open fire on a train on the way to France.
