UK begins airstrikes against ISIS in Syria

Four Tornados took off from the Royal Air Force (RAF) base in Akrotiri, Cyprus, shortly after the House of Commons vote gave the go-ahead for Britain to assist in the US-led bombing of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

“We are going to need to be patient and persistent. This is going to take time. It is complex, it is difficult what we are asking our pilots to do, and our thoughts should be with them and their families,” British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Thursday.

UK defence secretary Michael Fallon had earlier confirmed the strikes targeted the Omar oil fields in eastern Syria, which is under ISIS control. “I can confirm that British tornadoes were in action attacking oil fields in eastern Syria and were successful,” he said.

He also confirmed that eight more jets – two Tornados and six Typhoons – were being sent to join the existing jets at the Akrotiri base. Fallon had personally approved the targets ahead of the House of Commons vote yesterday, when MPs -- by a vote of 397 against 223 -- backed UK military action against ISIS in Syria after a 10-hour debate. The first Typhoon jet fighters left RAF Lossiemouth in Moray, Scotland, for Cyprus to join the airstrikes, an hour after the Commons vote.