U.S. Is Carrying Out Vast Majority of Strikes on ISIS, Military Officials Say

[cali]

I'm not saying that getting Arab nations like SA and Qatar on board doesn't have some significance, but it's largely window dressing. This is a U.S. war. It's directed and planned by the U.S. The U.S. owns it every bit as much as it owned the IW and even more than Libya.

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The vast majority of airstrikes launched against Sunni militant targets in Syria have been carried out by American war planes and ship-based Tomahawk cruise missiles, military officials said Tuesday, in what they described as the successful beginning of a long campaign to degrade and destroy the Islamic State.

In disclosing the identities of the five Sunni Arab nations that joined or supported the attacks in Syria — Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan and Qatar — the Obama administration sought to paint a picture of an international coalition resolute in its determination to take on the Sunni militant group.


Jordan said that “a number of Royal Jordanian Air Force fighters destroyed” several targets but did not specify where; the Emirati Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the air force “launched its first strikes against ISIL targets” on Monday evening, using another acronym for the Islamic State. American officials said that Saudi Arabia and Bahrain also took active part in the strikes, and that Qatar played a “supporting” role.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/24/world/middleeast/us-is-carrying-out-vast-majority-of-strikes-on-isis-military-officials-say.html

In this article there's a lot of detail about both the strikes carried out and future plans.


But Lt. Gen. William C. Mayville Jr., the director of operations with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that the majority of strikes were carried out by American warplanes and cruise missiles, with the aim of hindering the ability of the Islamic State to cross the border into Iraq and attack Iraqi forces.

[Baclava]

1. Wooooooooooooooo

[dmosh42]

2. Our media did a great job of scaring the American public, and now politics are driving ...

this repeat performance where we insert ourselves into a religious conflict again. Where are all these troops to assist us? They're all back home in Europe having a chuckle about how easy it is to have the US be the bad guy again. Has anyone seen the French plane that is helping? Or the the air forces from the Arab states? The draft needs to be re-instated, and we'll see all this enthusiasm for sending 'someone' off to war subside.

[morningfog]

3. As suspected. Qatar's support is political only.

As to the other 4 Arab nations, the extent of their involvement is quite limited, mostly flying support, but very little bombing.

Reading this article suggest that at a minimum, Jordan and UAE carried out at least initial strikes. No bombings are attributed to the others. That is likely it.

Have the support of 5 Arab nations doesn't make this war legal and doesn't justify it. And with the US doing all the heavy lifting, it doesn't insulate us, either.