France admits launching missile strikes in Syria

France says its air force carried out missile strikes in Syria last week, claiming the aggression was meant to target positions held by the Daesh terrorist group. 

The airstrikes are reportedly the first by France on Syrian soil since the fall of President Bashar al-Assad earlier this month.

"On Sunday, French air assets carried out targeted strikes against Daesh on Syrian soil,” French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said in a message on X on Tuesday.

He said France’s Rafale warplanes and US-made Reaper drones “dropped a total of seven bombs on two military targets belonging to Daesh in central Syria."

The aircraft took off from the French airbase at Prince-Hassan in Jordan.

Lecornu claimed the armed forces "remain engaged in battling terrorism in the Levant.”

France was part of the so-called US-led coalition Inherent Resolve, which claimed it was operating against Takfiri terrorists in Iraq and Syria. French troops involved in the operations are based in the region, including in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

France and Syria have been at odds for 13 years. The French government is planning to host an international meeting in Syria in January.

The Arab country faces deep uncertainty since militants, led by the HTS, took control of Damascus on December 8.

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