U.S. Fighter Jet Fires at Radar Site in Iraq
A U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter plane fired a missile Saturday at an Iraqi radar site after the jet was locked on electronically while in the “no-fly” zone over southern Iraq, the Pentagon said.
The F-16 returned safely to its base in Saudi Arabia, and it was not immediately known if the Iraqi site was damaged, Pentagon spokesman Capt. Bryan Salas said.
The incident occurred about noon local time Saturday. An investigation was underway, the Pentagon said.
White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry, traveling with President Clinton in New Orleans, said Clinton had been briefed on the incident by a member of the National Security Council staff.
McCurry said “there are no indications of changes in the status of antimissile deployment” by Iraq, but he referred reporters to the Pentagon for further details on the incident.
Since the end of the Persian Gulf War in 1991, the United States and its allies have maintained a “no-fly” zone over southern Iraq.
The zone was extended from the 32nd Parallel to the 33rd Parallel last month after an Iraqi military drive into Kurdish-held northern Iraq in support of pro-Iraqi Kurdish separatists.
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