After ISIS terrorists began slaughtering innocent civilians in Paris last weekend, French President François Hollande spoke to reporters at the Bataclan music hall, where one of the bloodiest attacks took place. In his statement President Hollande said:
“To all those who have seen these awful things, I want to say we are going to lead a war which will be pitiless. Because when terrorists are capable of committing such atrocities they must be certain that they are facing a determined France, a united France, a France that is together and does not let itself be moved, even if today we express infinite sorrow.”
On Friday and Saturday, ISIS abruptly took the lives of 129 innocent people. Over 350 were left injured, with many of them still in critical condition. On Sunday, President Holland’s war began.
On Sunday French fighter jets bombed a series of ISIS sites in Raqqa, Syria, on Sunday in what officials described as a major bombardment
ISIS claims Raqqa as the capital of its so-called caliphate. The targets in Sunday's airstrikes included a command center, a recruitment center, an ammunition storage base and a training camp for the terror group, said Mickael Soria, press adviser for France's defense minister.
Twelve aircraft, including 10 fighter jets, were involved in the airstrikes, Soria said. Twenty bombs were dropped, he said, and all of the targets were destroyed.
Bomb strikes against ISIS have been taking place, via an international coalition, for many months. The reason for France’s airstrike, on Sunday, is pretty clear. But how this will affect ISIS going forward is not as clear. Janine di Giovanni, Newsweek's Middle East editor comments :
"I think that it's very complicated, launching airstrikes like this as a retribution, but also as a way of wiping out ISIS," she said. "Because, the other thing is, that you can't wipe out an ideology. You might be able to suppress them militarily, or you might be able to cut off some of their lines, but you can't suppress the key message they're spreading."
Millions around the world want to see ISIS destroyed. As we mourn with with the people of Paris, we also mourn with the people of Beirut, Lebanon where ISIS killed 43 on Thursday and left over 200 injured.
(Special thanks to Tim Lister, Nick Paton Wash and Catherine E. Shoicht/CNN)