Russia to Conditionally Use Iraqi Airspace for Anti-Daesh Strikes
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Russia has been permitted to conditionally use the country’s airspace for airstrikes against ISIL (also known as Daesh) terrorists in Syria.
“We opened our skies to the Russians under some conditions. We have not received an official request from Russia about the passage of any types of rockets across our skies,” Abadi said during a press conference in Baghdad on Tuesday.
He noted that Russian planes will be using border corridors for their strikes and will not be flying over Iraqi cities.
“I allowed the bombers to fly over because we received clear information about them. They make precise strikes, avoid casualties among civilians. So, we will consider all the requests concerning security of civilians in Syria,” Abadi added, Press TV reported.
Russia has been bombing Daesh and other Takfiri terrorist groups in Syria at the official request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since September 30, 2015.
The remarks by Abadi came after the Russian Defense Ministry said that Russian warplanes have taken off from an airbase in the western Iranian city of Hamedan to target Takfiri terrorists and other militants in Syria.
Syria has been gripped by a foreign-backed militancy since March 2011.