Two Royal Air Force (RAF) jets on Saturday left for their first combat mission over Iraq, hours after the British Parliament authorised air strikes targeting Islamic State (IS) militants.
The Tornado jets took off from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. The planes were loaded with laser-guided bombs and missiles. The Tornados were supported by a Voyager air-to-air refuelling aircraft.
The British jets would join an American-led coalition which has been pounding IS fighters in Syria and Iraq for days, trying to weaken the movement’s grip on northern Iraq so the extremists can be beaten back by Kurdish and Iraqi troops.
“We can confirm that, following parliamentary approval given on Friday, RAF Tornados continue to fly over Iraq and are now ready to be used in an attack role as and when appropriate targets are identified,” the Ministry of Defence said.
“For operational security reasons we will not be providing a running commentary on movements; we will provide an update on activity when it is appropriate to do so.” The action comes after Parliament voted by 524 votes to 43 to take action against IS in Iraq, but not Syria.