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Pentagon: Strike in planning stages for 'some time'
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S.-led airstrike on Iraq Friday had been "working its way up the (military) chain of command for some time, " according to Pentagon spokesman Navy Rear Adm. Craig Quigley. The attack, in conjunction with British fighter aircraft, hit five targets south of Baghdad, the first strike of its kind in nearly two years.
The 2 1/2-hour operation was prompted by an "increased threat to our aircraft and our crew," Marine Lt. Gen. Gregory Newbold said at a Pentagon news conference. "It reached the point that it was obvious to our forces that they had to conduct the operation to safeguard those pilots and the aircraft. In fact (it was) essentially a self-defense measure," he said. Strike hit radar targetsNewbold said the strike involved 24 aircraft that targeted radar control positions which had increased their "frequency and sophistication" in threatening U.S. jets patrolling Iraqi air space. All U.S. and British planes involved in the attack returned safely, Newbold said. Aircraft used in the strike included F-15, F-18s and Tornado fighter jets, CNN Correspondent Jamie McIntyre reported. "All indications we have are that the munitions and the strikes were conducted efficiently and effectively," Newbold said. "We have no indications that there are any of the strikes that might have gone amiss. At no time did any aircraft go north of the 33rd parallel." The aircraft, from land bases in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia and from the aircraft carrier USS Harry Truman in the Persian Gulf, used so-called "stand-off" weapons that allowed the attack to originate from inside the Iraqi no-fly zone. No-fly zonesThe 33rd parallel was set as the northern border of a no-fly zone in southern Iraq created in the wake of the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Nations allied against Baghdad said they created the zone to protect factions of Iraqis who had been attacked and persecuted by Iraqi military aircraft. A second no-fly zone also has been declared north of the 36th parallel in northern Iraq. (More on no-fly zones) Iraq does not recognize the no-fly zones imposed by the allies, and has been actively, but unsuccessfully, trying to shoot down allied planes since December 1998. Newbold said efforts had been made to reduce civilian casualties resulting from the airstrike. "I would also note that all of these targets were picked because of the specific separation that they represented from non-military targets," Newbold said. 'This was different'Quigley was asked why U.S. President George W. Bush was required to sign off on this attack when previous U.S-led strikes in Iraq occurred without presidential approval. "This was different," Quigley said. Because the targets of the attack were north of the 33rd parallel -- out of the no-fly zone -- the president's permission was needed to launch the strike, he said. Military planners presented their attack proposal to the president on Thursday morning, after which Bush ordered the strike, White House sources told CNN Senior White House Correspondent John King. The more sophisticated Iraqi radar stations were increasing Iraqi chances of shooting down U.S. or British aircraft which routinely patrol airspace in the region, Pentagon officials told CNN Correspondent Jamie McIntyre. At least six British aircraft took part in the attack, some based from bases in Kuwait, CNN Correspondent Christiane Amanpour reported from London. Ex-Clinton official: Action 'appropriate'Samuel Berger, former U.S. national security adviser to former President Bill Clinton, told CNN he agreed with the decision to attack. "This is a completely appropriate action," he said. "This has been done before ... where we believed when our planes were being threatened, we took action. "We are patrolling the no-fly zone to protect the people of Iraq," Berger added, referring to Iraqi opponents of Saddam Hussein. "And in order to do that, we need to protect our planes." CNN Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre, CNN Senior White House Correspondent John King and Chief International Correspondent Christiane Amanpour contributed to this report. RELATED STORIES: A decade after Gulf War, Iraq endures RELATED SITES: U.S. Department of Defense |
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