UAE sends F-16 fleet to Jordan

Jordan was to receive several F-16 fighter jets from the UAE to support its air force in the fight against "Islamic State" (IS) militants. Amman vowed to "wipe out" IS extremists after the jihadists brutally executed its pilot, Muath al-Kaseasbeh, earlier this week.

"The orders are also in support of the military efforts of the Jordanian Armed Forces, The Jordan Arab Army, and their effective participation in the Global Coalition to counter ISIL," UAE news agency WAM reported, referring to the IS by its other acronym, ISIL, which stands for Islamic State in Syria and the Levant.

The F-16 fleet would be stationed in Jordan, but it was unclear whether Emirati aircraft would carry out airstrikes from Jordanian territory.

Both the UAE and Jordan joined the US-led military coalition against the IS, but according to the United States, UAE dropped out of the strikes after pilot al-Kaseasbeh was captured last year by IS militants.

The jihadis have occupied large parts of Iraq and Syria and aim to establish an Islamic caliphate based on orthodox Islamic Sharia law.

mg/rc (AP, Reuters, dpa)