British Empire’s Royal Air Force Declares ‘Global Role’ To Bomb Terrorists Anywhere, Anytime

Sept. 1, 2021 (EIRNS)—The Queen’s Royal Air Force is prepared to launch fresh air strikes against Islamic State in Afghanistan or anywhere else they may be found, Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston told the Telegraph on Aug. 30. “Ultimately, what this boils down to is that we’ve got to be able to play a global role in the global coalition to defeat Daesh [IS]—whether it’s strike or whether it’s moving troops or equipment into a particular country at scale and at speed.” The Telegraph reported that his comments came after Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said earlier the same day that Britain was willing to use “all means necessary” to combat IS amid warnings that the chaos in Afghanistan has increased the terror threat to the U.K. Raab was one of the signers of a joint statement of the global anti-ISIS coalition issued by the State Department the same day. “The U.K. stands united with our coalition partners in mourning those killed by Daesh’s horrific attack at Kabul airport and in our unwavering collective resolve to combat Daesh networks by all means available, wherever they operate,” Raab said.

Wigston declared, “If there’s an opportunity for us to contribute, I am in no doubt that we will be ready to. That will be anywhere where violent extremism raises its head and is a direct or indirect threat to the U.K. and our allies. Afghanistan is probably one of the most inaccessible parts of the world, and we’re able to operate there.”

“These [IS] are nasty, devious people who hide behind the civilian population and they fight from the civilian population. And it’s one of those awful consequences of tackling the violent extremists that, however hard we try, is in the back of my mind. I know there will be instances where there will be unavoidable civilian casualties,” Wigston said. However, he further stated that the latest Brimstone missiles were able to effectively eliminate a target without collateral damage.

London-based anti-drone activist Chris Cole, in a posting on his Drone Wars website, states that British drones and other aircraft continue to undertake military operations against ISIS in Iraq and Syria, with more than 50 U.K. airstrikes in the first six months of 2021. In addition, U.K. Reaper drones have also been engaged in a covert operation about which the government refuses to answer any questions, Cole remarks. “It remains to be seen whether ‘planning’ turns into actual operations, but launching such air strikes continues to kill innocent civilians,” referring to the U.S. drone strike in Kabul on Aug. 29 which the U.S. military says stopped an ISIS-K suicide attack, but which the Taliban and news reports claimed killed ten civilians.

“What is seemingly not in doubt, despite the humiliating end of U.S. and U.K. military operations against the Taliban in Afghanistan, is the willingness to embrace violent military action,” Cole concludes. “There is apparently no need to learn any lessons from the tragedy and failure of the last 20 years of Western military operations in Afghanistan or to reflect in any way on the effectiveness of air and drone strikes rather than diplomatic and political solutions. Forever War, apparently, is the only option there is.”