The Iraqi air force on Friday morning carried out its first airstrike against the Islamic State in Syria, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi confirmed. "We are determined to chase terrorism that tries to kill our sons and citizens wherever it is found, so we gave orders to the air force command to strike Islamic State positions in [the Iraqi towns of] Hosaiba and Albu Kamal inside Syrian territory as they were responsible for recent bombings in Baghdad," Abadi said in a statement. The Joint Operations Command said the strikes "destroyed Islamic State headquarters in Albu Kamal," Reuters reported.
The strike, which was reportedly carried out in "complete coordination" with the Syrian government, follows several ISIS-claimed car bombings in Iraq and comes amid Iraqi troops' final push into western Mosul, the terrorist group's last major stronghold in Iraq.
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