Australian Defence Ministry to halt air strikes in Iraq and Syria in January 2018

Almaty. December 22. Silkroadnews - Australian Defence Minister Marise Payne announced, six Australian F/A-18F Super Hornet strike aircraft will be brought home in January after successful operations in Iraq and Syria, the Kazakh Telegraph Agency (KazTAG) reported referring to TASS.
“The Australian government has determined we will bring home our six Super Hornet strike aircraft from the Middle East, marking the end of Australia's air strike operations in Iraq and Syria,” the statement said on the country’s defense website on Friday.
“Since October 2014, our Hornet pilots and support personnel have made a significant contribution in support of the Iraqi Security Forces,” Payne said.
According to press release from the Ministry of Defence, the Australian Air Force carried out more than 2 thousand 700 sorties against members of the terrorist group “Islamic State” (IS) in Iraq and the eastern regions of Syria.
To remind, on December 6 Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the IS complete defeat in Syria.
On 9 December, Iraq’s prime minister Haider al-Abadi announced the end of the war against the IS in the country.