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| Iraq |
| US planes pound Iraqi Al-Qaeda base |
| 2003-03-26 |
| Strike fighters from the USS Theodore Roosevelt bombed a terrorist training camp in northern Iraq early Wednesday. One F/A-18 pilot described the target as an "Al Qaeda terrorist camp," presumably a reference to Ansar al-Islam's camp, which Secretary of State Colin Powell described as al-Qaeda linked in a presentation before the UN. The aircraft were on a "close air support" mission, flying in a box over the area, when they were given coordinates mid-flight to strike. If this really is a "close air support" mission, it means that the Kurds are ready to move in. The pilots dropped GPS-guided bombs on the target, but heavy cloud cover prevented them from assessing the damage. SF will be spotting for the planes. The planes sensed surface-to-air missiles being fired from the ground by Iraqi forces but none managed to strike the aircraft, which returned safely to the ship. Humm, shoulder fired SAMs or bigger stuff, I wonder? Coalition aircraft, since the start of the war last Thursday, have carried out several air strikes in northern Iraq, targeting primarily Ansar al-Islam. They've been pounding them for about a week, should be ready to finish them off. |
| Posted by:Steve |