Iraq crisis: US launches first air strike against militants as Kerry warns Isis campaign shows 'all the signs of genocide'

John Kerry has declared a campaign by Islamic militants to overrun Iraq has “all the warning signs of genocide” as the US launched its first air strike against Islamic State artillery. The Pentagon said American aircraft launched an attack on artillery used by militants against Kurdish forces defending the city of Irbil.

US aircraft have launched an attack on artillery used by militants

Two F/A-18 aircraft dropped 500-pound laser-guided bombs on a mobile artillery piece, Pentagon press secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said in a statement. He said the Islamic rebels had been using the artillery to shell Kurdish forces near where US personnel are located. The move came just hours after Mr Obama authorized limited air strikes in Iraq to slow the rapid advance of Isis fighters, who have seized parts of the country.

Earlier Mr Kerry was quoted by Sky News as telling a conference in Afghanistan: “The stakes for Iraq's future can also not be more clear. "Isis's campaign of terror against the innocent, including the Christian minority, and its grotesque targeted acts of violence show all the warning signs of genocide.” In a late night statement, Mr Obama also confirmed US planes have delivered essential supplies to 40,000 Iraqis of the minority Yazidi religion who have fled into a mountainous area in north Iraq for fear of being slaughtered by the ISIS forces. Many are trapped on Mount Sinjar without food or water by fighters surrounding the mountain.

Militants have also captured Mosul, Iraq’s second biggest city, where Christians have been fleeing after an ultimatum was issued demanding they pay a special tax, convert, or face death. Alleged Isis militants in Salaheddin province. During the conference, Mr Obama was quick to stress strikes did not mean troops back on the ground, saying: “As commander in chief, I will not allow the United States to be drawn into fighting another war in Iraq.”

Meanwhile, David Cameron condemned attacks carried out by Isis as “barbaric”, but stressed he would not be ordering any military intervention in Iraq. Mr Cameron said he "fully agreed" with the President's view "that we should stand up for the values we believe in", and remains “especially concerned” for the Yazidi community. "I have tasked officials to urgently establish what more we can do to provide help to those affected, including those in grave need of food, water and shelter in the Sinjar area," he said.

"They fear slaughter if they descend back down the slopes but face starvation and dehydration if they remain on the mountain. The world must help them in their hour of desperate need." The French President François Hollande also spoke on Friday, saying France was ready to take part in action to end civilian suffering in Iraq. "We are ready to take responsibility for our part," Mr Hollande said in a statement.

Boeing unveils updated F/A-XX sixth-gen fighter concept

Boeing is unveiling an updated version of its F/A-XX sixth-generation fighter concept at the Navy League's Sea-Air-Space Exposition in Washington DC this week. 

The tail-less twin-engine stealth fighter design comes in "manned and unmanned options as possibilities per the US Navy," Boeing says. The design features diverterless supersonic inlets reminiscent of those found on the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.

Boeing sixth-gen fighter concept

The Boeing concept also features canards, which is somewhat of a surprise because the motion of those forward mounted control surfaces is generally assumed to compromise a stealth aircraft's frontal radar cross-section. But the lack of vertical tail surfaces suggests the aircraft would be optimized for all-aspect broadband stealth, which would be needed for operations in the most challenging anti-access/area denial environments.

Also of note in the manned version of the company's F/A-XX concept is the placement of the cockpit-rearward visibility appears to be restricted without the aid of a sensor apparatus similar to the F-35's distributed aperture system of six infrared cameras.

The Boeing F/A-XX concept is a response to a USN request for information (RFI) from April 2012 soliciting data for a replacement for the service's Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler fleets in the 2030s. The Super Hornet fleet is expected to start reaching the end of the jet's 9000h useful lifespan during that time period. 

"The intent of this research is to solicit industry inputs on candidate solutions for CVN [nuclear-powered aircraft carrier] based aircraft to provide air supremacy with a multi-role strike capability in an anti-access/area denied (A2AD) operational environment," the navy RFI stated. "Primary missions include, but are not limited to, air warfare (AW), strike warfare (STW), surface warfare (SUW), and close air support (CAS)."

Navy leaders had said at the time that they expect any new F/A-XX design to have greatly increased range and offer far superior kinematic performance compared to existing tactical aircraft.