Page 8 - ATD 05 DEC,2015

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world NEWSSaturday 5 December 2015

Germany Oks military mission against Islamic State group

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, right, casts her vote at the German Federal Parliament in The German Parliament even the bravest fighters,”
Berlin, Germany, Friday, Dec.4, 2015. Germany stepped up its contribution to the fight against voted 445 in support of Henin said. “The side that
the Islamic State group on Friday, with lawmakers overwhelmingly voting in favor of providing the mission against IS and will win ... is the party that
broad noncombat support to the U.S.-led coalition flying airstrikes against the militants. 146 against, with seven will have the Syrian people
abstentions. The plan re- on its side. By bombing Syr-
(AP Photo/Michael Sohn) ceived wide support from ia, we are pushing the Syr-
the ranks of Chancellor ians into the hands of IS.”
DAVID RISING bat support to the U.S.-led French authorities said Angela Merkel’s govern- The 134 million-euro ($145
Associated Press coalition flying airstrikes they were hunting two ing coalition, a week af- million) German mission
BERLIN (AP) — Germany against the militants. new suspects in the Paris ter the German leader will see two Tornado re-
stepped up its contribu- The move answers a call carnage. The men used assured French President connaissance planes sent
tion to the fight against for help from France fol- fake identity cards and Francois Hollande that to Turkey’s Incirlik base as
the Islamic State group lowing last month’s deadly sent money to a relative Germany would “act early as next week. The
on Friday, with lawmakers attacks in Paris. IS militants of the man who orches- quickly” to help its ally. frigate is already en route
overwhelmingly voting in claimed responsibility for trated the attacks the day German opposition law- to join French aircraft car-
favor of sending recon- the Nov. 13 attacks that before the ringleader died makers, however, ques- rier Charles de Gaulle.
naissance jets, a tanker killed 130 people and in a shootout with French tioned the effectiveness of “The goal... is to fight and
plane and a frigate to wounded hundreds. police, the Belgian pros- military operations against contain IS, and destroy
provide broad noncom- On Friday, Belgian and ecutor’s office said. the extremists. “You won’t their safe havens and their
fight IS that way. You’ll only ability to lead worldwide
strengthen it,” Left Party terror operations,” De-
lawmaker Sahra Wagen- fense Minister Ursula von
knecht told Parliament. der Leyen told reporters
Her criticism echoed the Thursday before heading
concerns voiced by Nico- to Ankara for talks with her
las Henin, a French journal- Turkish counterpart.
ist who was held hostage She also met with Turkish
by Islamic State militants President Recep Tayyip
for 10 months until being Erdogan to talk about
freed in April 2014. Henin stationing German troops
told The Associated Press there and other aspects of
that while using military the deployment, the De-
muscle against the group fense Ministry said Friday.
shouldn’t be ruled out, it In all, Germany plans to
should only be a small part send up to six Tornado re-
of a broader strategy. connaissance planes and
“The party that will win is a tanker aircraft, as well as
not the party that will have the frigate to help protect
the most powerful, the the French aircraft carrier,
most modern or the most but won’t actively engage
expensive weaponry or in combat.q

PM says Turkey cannot be ‘brought to its knees’ by Russia

SUZAN FRASER Prime Minister Ahmet Da- low the plane to trespass against an honorable na- Russia has retaliated by
Associated Press vutoglu again defend- tion like Turkey can bring it deploying long-range air
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) ed Turkey’saction and on Turkish territory before to its knees will be mistak- defense missile systems to
— Turkey’s prime minister said Turkey won’t apolo- en,” Davutoglu said. its base in Syria, 50 kilome-
struck a defiant tone Fri- gize for defending its bor- bombing areas in Syria Turkey insists the plane ters (30 miles) south of the
day in his nation’s growing ders. violated its airspace de- border with Turkey. It also
spat with Russia, declaring Davutoglu insisted Tur- where ethnic Turkish popu- spite repeated warnings. slammed an array of eco-
that his country cannot be key did not know the na- The shoot-down, the first nomic sanctions on Turkey,
“brought to its knees” by tionality of the plane it lations live. time a NATO country has including a ban on imports
Russian economic sanc- downed inside Turkish air downed a Russian plane in of fruit and vegetables and
tions imposed in response space. He suggested for “No one can blame Tur- more than half a century, the sales of tourism pack-
to Turkey’s downing of a the first time, however, that sparked a bitter falling out ages. Russia also scrapped
Russian warplane. the plane was brought key, no one can expect between the two nations, talks with Turkey on building
In a speech during a vis- down because Tur- which had developed ro- a pipeline to export Russian
it to Baku, Azerbaijan, key could not “morally” al- an apology from Turkey,” bust economic ties. natural gas to Europe.q

Davutoglu said in the

speech, which was tele-

vised on Turkish television.

“We would not apologize

for defending our borders.”

“Those who believe that

economic sanctions