Belgium will extend participation of its F16 aircraft in the US-led coalition’s mission to combat the Islamic State (Daesh) terror organization in Syria and Iraq, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said Thursday.
“F16 mission’s prolongation in Syria. Our country is a loyal partner in the fight against the Islamic State. Important for our security!” Michel wrote on his Twitter account.
The government is now due to formally adopt the decision.
Local media specified that the Belgium’s aircraft presently based in Jordan would continue to participate in anti-terror operations until the end of 2017, however, the number of the jets would be reduced by two to four.
The US-led coalition of 68 nations has been conducting airstrikes against Daesh in Syria and Iraq since 2014. The strikes in Syria are not authorized by the government of President Bashar Assad or the UN Security Council.
Nations around the globe strive to counter the increasing terror threat via all available means, including the adoption of additional security measures and joining various international coalitions. Over the past two years, the globe has witnessed multiple terror attacks, including on such European cities as Paris, Brussels, Nice, Berlin, London and Stockholm, among others. The latest deadly attack, killing eight people, took place in the UK capital on June 3, when a van drove into a crowd on London Bridge and the Borough Market area, with three men getting out of the vehicle and stabbing people at random.