U.S. security officials have confirmed that the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) stopped flying combat missions over Syria late last year after a Jordanian pilot was captured.
The New York Times first reported that the U.A.E. had suspended air strikes against Islamic State (IS) targets due to fears for the safety of their pilots after a Jordanian pilot was captured in December.
A video this week purported to show the pilot, Muath al-Kasasbeh, being burned to death by his IS captors.
Jordan's King Abdullah late on February 4 vowed a "relentless war" against IS militants, following the murder of Kasasbeh, who was captured after his F-16 crashed.
At dawn on February 4, Jordan executed two Iraqi militants, including a woman convicted for involvement in a triple hotel bombing in the Jordanian capital, Amman, that killed dozens of people in 2005.