France has conducted its first airstrike on ISIS

(Image credit: CC by: Airwolfhound)

last updated 8 January 2015

Early Friday, French Rafale fighter jets bombed a depot in northeastern Iraq controlled by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), marking France's first attack on ISIS and the first airstrike by a non-U.S. foreign country. The depot was "entirely destroyed," French President Francois Hollande's office said in a statement, and "other operations will follow in the coming days."

On Thursday, Hollande had said that French airstrikes against ISIS — or, as they say in France, Daesh — were coming "soon," but that France will not attack targets in Syria. France started flying reconnaissance missions over Iraq on Monday.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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