US hits 4 targets in Pacific missile defense test

US hits 4 targets in Pacific missile defense test

HONOLULU

The U.S. military says it intercepted four out of five targets during a missile defense test in the Pacific this week.

The Missile Defense Agency says the five targets during Wednesday’s test at Kwajalein Atoll included one medium-range ballistic missile, two short-range ballistic missiles and two low-flying cruise missiles.

Agency spokeswoman Pamela Rogers says it was the largest and most complex test of the nation’s ballistic missile defense system.

Soldiers at Kwajalein intercepted three of the missiles using two systems: the Patriot system and the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system.

Sailors aboard the USS Fitzgerald engaged one cruise missile. They attempted to shoot down a short-range missile but were unable to confirm interception.

Syrian military, some rebels accept 4-day UN cease-fire

BEIRUT

The Syrian military announced Thursday that it would abide by a United Nations-sponsored cease-fire during the four-day Eid al-Adha holiday, the first such agreement since April.

The cease-fire was set to begin at 6 a.m. today and last until Monday. Some of the rebel groups that are fighting the government said they’d adhere to the cease-fire as well, which was negotiated by Lakhdar Brahimi, the U.N.’s special envoy to Syria. The United States and Turkey, which back the rebels, and Iran, which supports the government of President Bashar Assad, had called for both sides to obey the cease-fire.

Opponents of the Syrian government said they were suspicious of its announcement but welcomed any potential respite from the fighting that has more than tripled in intensity since the last cease-fire, which was never fully implemented. More than 30,000 people have been killed in 19 months of violence, and hundreds of thousands have been driven from their homes.

Wire reports