the French army carried out “targeted strikes” against Daesh sites

France attacked several targets in Syria as part of the international anti-jihadist coalition. This is the first operation of this type since the fall of Bashar al-Assad.

This is a first since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. The French Ministry of the Armed Forces announced on Tuesday December 31 that it had struck positions of the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria as part of the international anti-jihadist coalition. “On Sunday, French air assets carried out targeted strikes against Daesh (IS) sites on Syrian soil,” declared the Minister of the Armed Forces, Sébastien Lecornu, on X. “Our armies remain engaged in the fight against terrorism in the Levant”, he continues from Lebanon, where he is spending New Year’s Eve with the head of French diplomacy, Jean-Noël Barrot, and French soldiers of the United Nations Force (UNIFIL).

France has participated in this international coalition, Inherent Resolve, since 2014 in Iraq and 2015 in Syria. “Rafales and Reapers”, respectively fighter planes and drones, “delivered a total of seven bombs on two Daesh military objectives in central Syria,” the ministry told AFP.

The fall of Bashar al-Assad and the fear of the return of ISIS

It is the fall of Bashar al-Assad that has made several countries fear the return of ISIS to the region. Indeed, the lightning offensive by Syrian rebel forces has led to the total recomposition of the country, which leaves room for Daesh. Historically, ISIS has been very active in Iraq and Syria, even since the end of its caliphate in 2019.

The same fear is felt by the United States, which has reinforced its troops in Syria, increasing the number of people there to 2,000 in order to ensure that Daesh “does not seek to take advantage of the situation to reconstitute itself in central Syria”, analyzes the American Central Command (Centcom).