Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Canadian Warplanes In Final Preparations To Extend Bombing Campaign Into Syria

Darpan News Desk IANS, 02 Apr, 2015 01:24 PM

    OTTAWA — The commander of Canada's combat operations in the Middle East says preparations to send air strikes into Syria are in the final stages and bombs could be falling on Islamic State targets within days.

    Brig.-Gen. Dan Constable, speaking in a conference call from Kuwait on Thursday, said Canada's allies are "excited" that the CF-18 jets will expand their operations beyond Iraq, where they have been conducting missions for six months.

    Since last September, the U.S., and at least three Persian Gulf countries, have also been hitting extremist targets in Syria, which is tangled in a brutal, four-year-long, civil war.

    Constable said Canadian pilots are being briefed on the new territory and reviewing potential threats in specific areas.

    "From our perspective, operations in Syria are going to be very, very close to those over Iraq in terms of how we mitigate threats, surface-to-air threats," he said. "As you can imagine, the safety of my aircrew is paramount for me and I'm very confident we have all of the procedures in place to deal with any threats that could be presented."

    Constable would not say whether pilots have been instructed to attack Syrian air defence batteries that lock on to them with radar, nor would he comment on the state of that country's early warning system.

    Defence Minister Jason Kenney has said strikes against extremists will take place in areas where there is no Syrian air-defence radar, but open-source technical reports show as many as five of the country's 31 early warning sites are located in the region. Whether they are still operational is unclear.

    Earlier this week, Parliament approved a motion that extended the combat mission for a year and expanded the campaign to include missions in Syria, where the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant holds sway over a vast swath of territory in the eastern and northern portions of the country.

    The CF-18s flew six bombing missions in Iraq over the last 10 days, but none of them involved supporting the major offensive in Tikrit, where Iranian-backed Shiite militias and the Iraqi army have fought a bloody, protracted battle.

    The U.S.-led coalition initially held back air support because of the involvement of Iran's elite Republican Guard, known as the Quds Force, in training the militias. It has since relented and conducted a series of strikes — beginning March 25 — that paved the way for government forces to advance.

    Foreign Affairs Minister Rob Nicholson insisted last week that Canada does not "align with the Iranians."

    Yet, Constable confirmed on Thursday there is no ban on Canadians supporting the Tikrit operation. The absence of CF-18s from the strike roster was a decision by the American commanders who allot targets.

    "There is no specific prohibition," he said. "We would strike in support of the government of Iraq, Iraqi security forces and it just so happens in the Tikrit area, there's enough coalition strike assets that we were assigned in other areas on that day."

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Canadian Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell Hospitalized In Los Angeles

    Canadian Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell Hospitalized In Los Angeles
    LOS ANGELES — Joni Mitchell was in intensive care in a Los Angeles-area hospital on Tuesday, according to the Twitter account and website of the folk singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer.

    Canadian Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell Hospitalized In Los Angeles

    From A Mountain Top To Centre Block: How Harper Made The Case For War

    From A Mountain Top To Centre Block: How Harper Made The Case For War
    OTTAWA — Twice in six months, Prime Minister Stephen Harper put a motion before the House of Commons to commit Canada to war with the militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

    From A Mountain Top To Centre Block: How Harper Made The Case For War

    Making Sense Of The Duffy Trial: A Primer On The Four Principal Chapters

    Making Sense Of The Duffy Trial: A Primer On The Four Principal Chapters
    OTTAWA — When the trial for Mike Duffy gets underway Tuesday, Crown prosecutors will lay out their case against the suspended senator in four key areas. Here's a look at the issues behind the charges against him.

    Making Sense Of The Duffy Trial: A Primer On The Four Principal Chapters

    Cost Of Iraq And Nato Reassurance Missions 'Classified' In Coming Budget: DND

    Cost Of Iraq And Nato Reassurance Missions 'Classified' In Coming Budget: DND
    OTTAWA — Parliament may have approved a year-long extension to the country's combat mission in Iraq and Syria, but the Harper government is once again refusing to say how much it will cost taxpayers.

    Cost Of Iraq And Nato Reassurance Missions 'Classified' In Coming Budget: DND

    Museum Of History Opens Exhibit Chronicling Terry Fox's Marathon Of Hope

    Museum Of History Opens Exhibit Chronicling Terry Fox's Marathon Of Hope
    GATINEAU, Que. — An exhibit of artifacts from Terry Fox's epic Marathon of Hope is opening this week at the Canadian Museum of History.

    Museum Of History Opens Exhibit Chronicling Terry Fox's Marathon Of Hope

    Duffy Trial Promises Crash Course In Controversial Senate Expense, Housing Rules

    Duffy Trial Promises Crash Course In Controversial Senate Expense, Housing Rules
    OTTAWA — When lawyers arrive at the Ottawa courthouse Tuesday for the long-awaited start of the Mike Duffy trial, they'll be armed with the equivalent of advanced degrees in the rules governing Senate expenses.

    Duffy Trial Promises Crash Course In Controversial Senate Expense, Housing Rules