France launches first airstrikes on Islamic State in Syria

PARIS, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- France launched its first airstrikes against the Islamic State militant group in Syria, President Francois Hollande's office announced Sunday.

The French government said "France has hit Syria" based on information collected during two weeks of air reconnaissance flights "in coordination with coalition partners."

French President Francois Hollande earlier this month said his country would carry out airstrikes against the IS, also known as the ISIL and ISIS, and work with others to take down the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Hollande said there is proof that Syria was planning attacks on countries that included France and blamed the IS for Europe's migrant crisis, the largest since World War II.

''Our country confirms its resolute commitment to the fight against the terrorist threat Daesh. We will strike whenever our national security is at stake," the government said in a statement, using another term for the IS.

A United States-led coalition has been carrying out airstrikes in Syrian for more than a year. France had previously confined its airstrikes against the IS to Iraqi air space. The president's office said the Syrian chaos demands a "global response."