TAZAMA PICHA 8::Marekani imeanza mashambulizi ya anga dhidi ya kundi la ISIS huko Syria

 Assault on ISIS begins: Pentagon press secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby confirmed Monday nightthat the U.S. and partner nations have begun airstrikes in Syria against Islamic State militants

 Target: With the aid of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the U.S. chose to strike the ISIS-held Syrian city of Raqqa (pictured) first late Monday and into Tuesday

 Just the beginning? Along with partner nations Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, the strikes began in the ISIS stronghold city of Raqqa

 Rolling out the Raptor: According to reports, the $139million F-22 stealth fighter jet saw combat for the first time ever during the strikes over Raqqa. Two of the jets are pictured here, over Guam

 The aircraft carrier George H.W. Bush is pictured here. It is currently in the Persian Gulf and may have been a launching point for some of the aircraft that struck at Syria on Monday (FILE)

 Strong presence: Military leaders have said about two-thirds of the estimated 31,000 Islamic State militants were in Syria. The U.S. has also been increasing its surveillance flights over Syria, getting better intelligent on potential targets and militant movements

Assault on ISIS begins: U.S. and partner nations send fighter jets, bombers and Tomahawk missiles into rebel-held Syria

*Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan are aiding with the strikes, starting in the ISIS stronghold city of Raqqa

*The U.S. is the only non-Arab nation taking part in this first-wave strike

*General Lloyd Austin, commander of the U.S. military's Central Command, made the decision to conduct the strikes as authorized by Obama

*Obama vowed two weeks ago to stop ISIS after the beheading of Westerners by the Islamic extremists, including two American journalists

*The $139 million F-22 stealth fighter jets saw their first combat ever over Syria

*Tomahawk missiles were launched from the northern Persian Gulf and from the Red Sea

The U.S. and partner nations launched the first-wave air assault against ISIS in Syria on Monday night using a one-two punch of manned aircraft and Tomahawk cruise missiles.

The strikes were part of the President Barack Obama's campaign to disrupt and destroy the Islamic extremists, who have slaughtered thousands of people, beheaded Westerners, and captured a large swath of territory stretching from within Syria to land across northern and western Iraq.

Along with partner nations Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan, the strikes began in the ISIS stronghold city of Raqqa, reports CNN.

Qatar may also have been involved in the strikes.

The strikes were carried out by Air Force and Navy aircraft, and the Tomahawk missiles were launched from U.S. ships in the northern Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. The aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush is in the Gulf.

U.S. officials said the airstrikes began around 8:30 p.m. EDT.

The first wave of strikes finished about 90 minutes later, but the operation was expected to continue for several more hours, according to one U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly by name about an ongoing mission.

Kirby said the decision to strike was made earlier Monday by the military.

Kirby did not name the partner nations participating in the operation; however U.S. officials have said the U.S. would not launch this mission alone and some Arab nations had been expected to participate.