British fighter jets have bombed a former palace of Saddam Hussein being used as a training centre for Isis recruits in Iraq, according to the UK Ministry of Defence.
A pair of RAF Tornados took part as a multinational squadron attacked the headquarters and training centre for foreign terrorist recruits, located close to the Tigris in Mosul.
The strike was part of a co-ordinated coalition attack on the compound, which housed and trained recruits and contained outbuildings for internal security and repression, the MoD said. Extensive surveillance had shown Islamic State was using the palace, built by Iraq’s former dictator as a major headquarters and training centre.
The multinational squadron including the British Tornados armed with the RAF’s largest 2000lb Paveway bombs attacked the complex on the afternoon of Monday, the MoD said – hitting the headquarters building first, then a security centre, in what was rated as a successful attack in initial assessments.
The secure compound next to the Tigris river included the main palace used for accommodation and meetings, and outbuildings used for command and control, training, internal security and repression, the MoD said.
The UK defence secretary, Michael Fallon, said: “Daesh [Isis] has been losing followers and territory for months, and emphatic strikes like this show that we and the coalition will not waver.”
During his visit to RAF Akrotiri, from where Tornado and Typhoon aircraft have been flying daily missions against Isis, Fallon announced that additional UK troops would deploy to Iraq to support the mutinational military effort against Islamic State later this month.
