Dozens killed and wounded in over 50 airstrikes
America has widened its air strikes on the Islamic State to Syria for the first time, joined by Arab countries, which give important legitimacy to the US-led operation. The Syrian Observatory for human rights said at least 20 Islamic State fighters were killed in the air strikes and dozens of others were wounded. Thousands of Syrians fled Raqqa, which is the center of ISIS power in Syria.
Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) participated in the strikes, which were aimed at the groups training camps, bases and checkpoints. Separately, the US said its aircraft struck targets belonging to Khorasan, a radical rebel group opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. US officials said the strikes were meant to stop “imminent attack planning against the United States and Western interests.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry said the country supports “any international effort” against Islamic State “while insisting on respect for national sovereignty.” The inclusion of the Gulf States changes the conception of the attacks on ISIS from a US interest to a joint US-moderate Arab state front against radical groups.
“ISIS is a real danger among Sunni countries that fear they will lose control and so they cooperate with the US”, political analyst Samir Awad of Birzeit Univeristy told The Media Line.
Other Arab analysts agree that ISIS is being seen as a threat by more and more states.
“ISIS is hated because it is an enemy of the Arab and Muslims and it’s growing rapidly,” Okba Marzougui of the Arab Analysis, a Tunisian think tank told The Media Line. “They could reach Paris. They could reach the United Kingdom. This is a cancer that needs to be dealt with in the highest priority.”
Ironically, Arab countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar have helped the anti-Syrian regime rebels, today the target of some of the air strikes. Political analysts fear that many of the weapons that were delivered to the Syrian rebels have ended up in the wrong hands.
The coalition against ISIS coalesced after the brutal murders of three people who had been held by the group – two journalists, James Foley and Stephen Sotloff, and more recently a British aid worker David Haines.
The Jordanian military confirmed that it had hit a number of targets.
Jordanian journalist Jehad Al Ranteesy says the mood on the street is one of worry. “The Jordanians agreed to this campaign because of their fear that ISIS could carry out attacks here,” he told The Media Line.
Al Ranteesy, says the worry is that groups such as the Salafi Jihadi Movement that empathize with ISIS will grow stronger. In June, Jordanians went on high alert after ISIS took control of the Trebil crossing between Amman and Iraq before withdrawing.
“The Jordanian authorities are trained professionals who have the ability to protect Jordan from anyone trying infiltrate from Syria or Iraq. Al Salafi-Jihadi resides in poor areas and security measures have been increased in recent months because of this worry,” he said.
Last month, Jordanian police made arrests of suspects who are feared might sympathize with ISIS.
Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi said this week that he is ready to provide whatever support is needed in the fight against ISIS but did not specify in which way. He also called for what he called was a "comprehensive strategy" to tackle the roots of extremism across the region.
Egyptian Authorities say they have been warning about groups like ISIS since the 1990’s. “We are definitely against any terrorism, especially that uses religion to achieve other means,” Egyptian official Wael Atiyeh told The Media Line.
This is not the first time that Arab states have allied with the US. In 1990, when former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, Egypt and Syria joined a US-led American coalition, along with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar did as well.
In that case, said political analyst Awad, Kuwait was a sovereign state, as well as a member of the Arab league and the United Nations. This time, US President Barack Obama says there will not be US ground troops sent, and all US involvement will be from the air.