Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

MACDILL AFB, FL – At approximately 1 a.m. Eastern Standard Time today, U.S. Air Force F-15E "Strike Eagles" and U.S. Navy F/A-18 "Hornets" and F-14 "Tomcats" enforcing the Operation Southern Watch No-Fly Zone struck two Iraqi military communication facilities.

The strikes were conducted near As Samawah, which is approximately 130 miles southeast of Baghdad and Al Amarah, which is approximately 170 miles southeast of Baghdad. The strikes were in response to anti-aircraft artillery fire directed at coalition aircraft on a previous mission.

The aircraft, operating from land and sea bases in the Southwest Asia region, responded to the Iraqi provocation by releasing precision guided munitions against the ground targets. Damage assessment is ongoing and all aircraft involved in the strike have returned to base safely.

Coalition air and naval forces are responsible for enforcing the no-fly zones over Iraq and the UN-mandated maritime sanctions. At the same time, these forces continuously assess the level of threat posed by the Iraqi forces and take actions that are necessary to reduce these threats and to defend themselves.

Since OPERATION DESERT, FOX there have been more than 90 Southern Watch No-Fly Zone violations and more than 30 incidents involving Iraqi surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft artillery and target tracking radar illuminations against coalition aircraft. Coalition forces enforcing the Southern No-Fly Zone have responded by attacking more than 35 targets that threatened coalition forces and were in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolutions.

Despite repeated warnings, Iraqi actions and intentions pose serious threats to our aircrews and our actions today are an appropriate response to these threats.