Leading the headlines in Defence news today are reports that RAF Typhoons have launched their first air strikes against Daesh in Syria last night. Coverage also claims Daesh is on the rise in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of western combat forces from the country.
Syria
Multiple newspapers cover the news that RAF Typhoons carried out their first mission against Daesh in Syria last night following the aircraft deploying to RAF Akrotiri earlier in the week. Articles in The Times, Daily Express and Daily Star report that four fighter-bombers - two Typhoons FGR4s and two Tornado GR4s took off from the base after dark to continue the UK's air campaign against Daesh. The articles go on to say that the targets of the operation were not immediately made public, but reference RAF strikes carried out overnight on Thursday, in which a pair of RAF Tornados killed a Daesh sniper team that had opened fire on Iraqi forces in and around the city of Ramadi, in western Iraq. A second pair of the aircraft, also flying overnight on Thursday, conducted a reconnaissance patrol over eastern Syria, the articles add.
It is also widely reported that Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has denied the MOD had raised concerns with Downing Street about using 70,000 to describe the number of moderate Syrian rebels ready to fight Daesh. The Sun and The Guardian are among the papers that carry this story. The Defence Secretary's full position on this can be seen below.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said:
My department did not raise concerns with Number 10 about whether the 70,000 figure should be included in the Prime Minister’s response to the Foreign Affairs Committee.
The 70,000 figure was produced by the independent Joint Intelligence Committee which includes senior Ministry of Defence officials among its membership. The figure was based on intelligence assessments including those provided by my department.
Afghanistan
The Times reports that Daesh is on the rise in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of western combat forces and the “splintering” of the Taliban. The article says that Daesh fighters have captured swathes of eastern Afghanistan in a drive to establish a new province of the group’s self-styled caliphate on territory straddling the border with Pakistan.
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