Israel brags it is 1st state to use US-made F-35 in combat & ‘attacks on different fronts’

Published time: 22 May, 2018 08:14Edited time: 22 May, 2018 08:31

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FILE PHOTO An Israeli Air Force F-35 fighter jet flies during an aerial demonstration at the

 Hatzerim Airbase. December 27, 2017 © Amir Cohen / Reuters

Israel, which has conducted several air raids in neighboring Syria, now brags it is the first country to use the US-made F-35 in combat to “attack” targets in the Middle East. It did not specify the targets.

“We are flying the F-35 all over the Middle East. It had become part of our operational capabilities,” Israel Air Force Commander Major-General Amikam Norkin said at the AF Senior Air Force Conference in Herzilya on Tuesday.

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Norkin further stated that “We are the first to attack using the F-35 in the Middle East and have already attacked twice on different fronts.” 

The Israeli Air Force chief, however, left out the part about which targets were actually hit by the jets, though Tel Aviv recently launched a massive attack inside war-ravaged neighbor Syria. It has also been blamed for a number of similar attacks, though weaker in scale. This has only fueled tensions in the region, triggering a fierce reaction from Damascus.

The Israeli Air Force announcement comes a week after the official opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem, which triggered widespread condemnation in the Arab world and yielded no support for Washington from its Western allies. The opening ceremony, which praised the re-location as another step towards peace, was marred by bloodshed, in which hundreds of Palestinian protesters were killed and injured by Israeli forces. The indiscriminate violence was condemned by rights groups.