The second set of air strikes carried out by the French air force against Islamic State in Syria killed six French jihadists, French radio Europe1 reported Monday, citing unidentified officials from the prime minister’s office.
Over the past two weeks, French fighter jets have dropped bombs on Islamic State’s training facilities to target groups that were planning attacks on French soil, French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and Prime Minister Manuel Valls said.
The latest strikes, carried out during the night between Thursday and Friday, killed six French jihadists, who had traveled to join Islamic State.
France long resisted carrying out air strikes in Syria for fear of inadvertently strengthening the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The decision to strike in Syria shows that concerns over Islamic State are beginning to outweigh its opposition to Mr. Assad.
