ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Belgium will extend its air strikes against ISIS into Syria, a spokesman for Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel told AFP on Friday.
“In accordance with UN Resolution 2249, the engagement will be limited to those areas of Syria under the control of IS (ISIS) and other terrorist groups,” AFP quoted the spokesperson.
The spokesperson continued that the aim of strikes is to “destroy these groups and [their] refuges,” adding that the Belgian F-16 strikes will begin in July.
In March, Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reyndres said “It doesn’t make sense to attack ISIS in Iraq but not in Syria.”
As part of the US-led coalition against ISIS, Belgium struck ISIS for the first time in Iraq in 2014. At the time, Belgium opted to stay out of Syria because of fears in the country of getting too deeply involved in the conflict. Public opinion swayed, however, after attacks in the capital Brussels in March killed 32 and wounded hundreds.
“In accordance with UN Resolution 2249, the engagement will be limited to those areas of Syria under the control of IS (ISIS) and other terrorist groups,” AFP quoted the spokesperson.
The spokesperson continued that the aim of strikes is to “destroy these groups and [their] refuges,” adding that the Belgian F-16 strikes will begin in July.
In March, Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reyndres said “It doesn’t make sense to attack ISIS in Iraq but not in Syria.”
As part of the US-led coalition against ISIS, Belgium struck ISIS for the first time in Iraq in 2014. At the time, Belgium opted to stay out of Syria because of fears in the country of getting too deeply involved in the conflict. Public opinion swayed, however, after attacks in the capital Brussels in March killed 32 and wounded hundreds.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment