French Strikes Hit 2 Targets in Attacks on ISIL Stronghold in Syria’s Raqqa

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – French warplanes struck two targets in the Islamic State (ISIL) jihadist group's de-facto capital of Raqqa, Syria, in retaliation for the deadly attacks in Paris that are thought to have been coordinated from inside the war-torn country, the French Defense Ministry said Tuesday.

“On the night of November 16 to 17, 2015, at 1:30 a.m. French time [12:30 GMT], the French army again raided against Daesh [Arabic acronym for ISIL] – Raqqa in Syria,” the ministry said. “The [Operation] Chammal forces destroyed two operational sites of terrorist fighters.”

Six Mirage 2000 and four Rafale fighter jets hit an IS command center and a training area, according to the statement.

Operation Chammal, launched in September 2014 as part of a US-led coalition of 62 states against ISIL targets in Iraq and Syria, was expanded Sunday night.

ISIL claimed responsibility for a series of coordinated shootings and suicide bombings in the French capital on November 13 that have left 132 dead and over 350 injured.

French President Francois Hollande declared a state of emergency, and ordered increased defense spending amid what French authorities described an ongoing terror threat.