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February 11, 1999
Web posted at: 3:53 p.m. EST (2053 GMT)

In this story: Iraq pressures Turkey Second day of bombing RELATED STORIES, SITES

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iraq said two civilians were killed and others were wounded on Thursday by U.S. fighter jets that pummeled Iraq's air defense system for the second consecutive day. The Pentagon said it had no confirmation of casualties.

U.S. aircraft patrolling the northern no-fly zone on Thursday struck two communications sites, two surface-to-air missile systems and an Iraqi radar site near the town of Mosul, U.S. Defense Department spokesman Lt. Col. Steve Campbell said.

The Pentagon said it had no information on casualties, and that damage to Iraqi forces was still being assessed.

"We take every effort to avoid civilian casualties, but (Iraqi President) Saddam Hussein has to take a lot of the blame as long as he continues to violate the no-fly zones and attack our aircraft," Campbell said.

Later Thursday, U.S. fighter pilots attacked two separate radar sites and associated targets in the southern no-fly zone, said a spokesman for the U.S. Central Command.

Iraq pressures Turkey

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz said in Baghdad Thursday that Iraq would continue to challenge the no-fly zones "no matter what the sacrifices and consequences are."

Aziz also said he would ask the Turkish government during a visit to Ankara next week to end a U.S.-British mandate to use the southern Turkish air base at Incirlik to launch patrols of the northern no-fly zone.

Campbell said there was no damage to U.S. aircraft and no U.S. personnel were injured in Thursday's clashes.

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In the first incident, between about 12:15 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. Iraqi time (4:15 a.m. and 4:30 a.m. EST), a U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle observed Iraqi anti-aircraft artillery fire and was "illuminated" by an Iraqi radar system near Mosul, the U.S. Defense Department said.

"Acting in self-defense, one F-15E dropped four GBU-12s on an Iraqi surface-to-air missile communications site," a Defense Department statement said. Two other fighter jets then dropped precision-guided bombs on an Iraqi surface-to-air missile system.

At 6:45 p.m. Iraqi time (10:45 EST) Thursday, six U.S. Air Force F-15Es, along with two U.S. Navy F-14s and two FA-18s, hit multiple targets in the southern no-fly zone, near Al Habbariyah, 135 miles southwest of Baghdad, and Al Amarah, 170 miles southeast of Baghdad, with laser-guided bombs, said a spokesman for U.S. Central Command.

There was no report about damage or casualties in the attack on the southern no-fly zone.

Second day of bombing

On Wednesday, U.S. jets attacked Iraq's air defenses in the southern no-fly zone in response to Iraqi MiG-23s and MiG-25s flying into the exclusion area.

Iraq said one person was killed and others were wounded in a U.S. attack in Najaf in the south Wednesday. A U.S. military spokesman said he could not confirm any civilian casualties in Wednesday's clash.

Iraq said U.S. missiles hit civilian areas in Basra last month, killing 18 people. Washington admitted a missile accidentally hit a civilian area.

The no-fly zones were imposed after the 1991 Gulf War to protect Kurdish enclaves in the north and Shiite Muslims in the south from possible attacks from Baghdad.

Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre andReuters contributed to this report.

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