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NEWS RELEASE
HEADQUARTERS,
UNITED STATES CENTRAL COMMAND
7115 South Boundary Boulevard
MacDill AFB, Fla. 33621-5101
Phone: (813) 828-5894; FAX: (813) 840-5629; DSN 968-5894

May 2, 2000
RELEASE NUMBER: 00-05-01

COALITION AIRCRAFT STRIKE IRAQI MILITARY TARGETS IN THE SOUTH

MACDILL AFB, FL - - At approximately 7:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, a U.S. Air Force F-16 "Fighting Falcon," a U.S Marine Corps F/A-18 "Hornet" and British Royal Air Force GR-1 "Tornados" enforcing the Southern No-Fly Zone used precision-guided weapons to strike military radar sites in southern Iraq.

All coalition aircraft have returned safely and battle damage assessment is ongoing.

The coalition strikes came in response to surface-to-air missile launches against coalition aircraft today.

To date, there have been more than 460 separate incidents of Iraqi surface-to-air missile and anti-aircraft artillery fire directed against coalition pilots since December 1998. Iraqi aircraft violated the Southern No-Fly Zone more than 150 times during the same period.

The sites were targeted to further degrade Iraq's ability to jeopardize coalition pilots and aircraft enforcing United Nations' mandates. The last coalition strike in the Southern No-Fly-Zone was against anti-aircraft batteries near Ar Rumaylah, Al Kut, and Al Basrah on April 6.

Coalition aircraft do not target civilian populations or infrastructure and seek to avoid injury to civilians and damage to civilian facilities.





5/2/00 10:28:59 AM