How do you know it came from this airbase?
Yet the bombing response did not mention the airbase. "British and American jets pounded Iraqi command and communication targets in southern Iraq yesterday in retaliation for the shooting down of an American Air Force Predator drone."
The infiltration of Iraq continues.
Please elaborate on this.
The dawn strikes came after an Iraqi MiG-25 fighter shot down the drone, conducting reconnaissance near Al Kut in eastern Iraq, on Monday.
The airbase described is on the outskirts of Al Kut. Of course, the airplane could have come from elsewhere, but it is not unreasonable to suppose that it originated from the nearest airfield to the point of interception to minimize exposure to US fighter aircraft. Moreover, the airfield in question is long enough to support Mig-29 fighters, and has hardened aircraft shelters at each end of the runway, presumably so that the Iraqi Migs can duck under cover without having to taxi a long way.
You will also observe that the retaliation did not specifically mention going after any airbase or airplanes themselves. During the Clinton administration, US aircraft were allowed to destroy the proximate cause of danger -- air defense radars and launchers which locked onto them. Recently, the Administration has allowed the airmen to strike at the deeper mechanisms of resistance: command and control centers; communications nodes, etc. Hence, "British and American jets pounded Iraqi command and communication targets in southern Iraq".
One can speak of the infiltration of Iraq as the process of gradually inserting forces into the Kurdish North, or among the Marsh Arabs of the south, as well as severely degrading the nerve centers of Iraqi resistance. For example, the fiber-optic cables to Basra were recently cut by bombing. Leaflet drops into Iraq have started. Typically leaflet drops are in support of activated guerilla groups.
I hope this helps.