Jordan's King Abdullah, a trained pilot, could lead revenge airstrikes on Islamic State himself, it has been revealed.
The monarch may personally take part in bombing raids on extremist strongholds on Thursday, according to reports in Arabic-language newspapers.
It comes after the former general told members of Congress that he was ready to exact a blistering revenge against the ISIS terror army for the brutal execution of military pilot Moaz al-Kassasbeh - and he quoted a Clint Eastwood movie character to make his point.
According to the dailycaller, reports have emerged suggesting he could take part in airstrikes on ISIS targets today.
California Republican Rep. Duncan Hunter told the Washington Examiner that the king quoted the scene where Eastwood's character announces his plan for retribution.
'Any man I see out there, I'm gonna kill him,' Eastwood's William Munny says in 'Unforgiven.'
'Any son of a bitch takes a shot at me, I'm not only going to kill him, I'm going to kill his wife and all his friends and burn his damn house down.'
'He said there is going to be retribution like ISIS hasn't seen,' Hunter said. 'He's angry. 'They're starting more sorties tomorrow than they've ever had. They're starting tomorrow. And he said, "The only problem we're going to have is running out of fuel and bullets".'
'He's ready to get it on. He really is. It reminded me of how we were after 9/11. We were ready to give it to them.'
Hunter told the Examiner that no one in the king's meeting on Tuesday with members of the House Armed Services Committee made any mention of President Obama, who is seen by some anti-ISIS coalition partners as a weak and indecisive actor.
South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said after a separate meeting with the king that Jordan would have a 'strong and forceful' response to the the fiery execution.
'The Jordanian response will be more engaged, not less engaged, when it comes to destroying ISIL,' Graham said.
'The king feels that the gloves are off and that it now is time if you can't negotiate with these people, you're going to have to take it to them, and I think it's going to be more than Jordan.'
Obama and Abdullah met Tuesday evening in a hastily arranged meeting just hours after a grisly video emerged showing al-Kassasbeh, who was 26 years old, being burned alive in a cage by ISIS.
They emerged from the meeting, vowing to continue their fight of the extremist group gaining control over large swathes of Iraq and Syria.
In addition, the State Department said Tuesday that the administration will increase its annual aid to Jordan to $1 billion from $660 million to help it pay for the cost of housing refugees from Iraq and Syria – and provide new resources to fight ISIS.
An agreement on the aid will require congressional approval.
In a brief statement, the U.S. State Department said it planned to provide $1 billion per year to Jordan for each of the U.S. fiscal years for 2015, 2016 and 2017. The U.S. fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
Al-Kassasbeh was captured in December when his F-16 jet crashed over northern Syria, a mission that was part of the U.S.-led coalition campaign against the jihadists.
During the meeting, President Obama offered 'his deepest condolences' to the king over the pilot's death
'The president and King Abdullah reaffirmed that the vile murder of this brave Jordanian will only serve to steel the international community's resolve to destroy ISIL,' said White House spokesman Alistair Baskey.
Obama earlier decried the 'cowardice and depravity' of the Islamic State, saying the brutal killing would only strengthen international resolve to destroy the extremists.
The White House would not speculate on whether the video was released to coincide with Abdullah's visit to Washington, where he was not scheduled to meet Obama.
The president said First Lieutenant Kassasbeh's 'dedication, courage and service to his country' represented 'universal human values that stand in opposition to the cowardice and depravity of ISIL.'
'Today, we join the people of Jordan in grieving the loss of one of their own,' the president added, as his administration reaffirmed its intention to give Jordan $3 billion in security aid over the next three years.
'As we grieve together, we must stand united, respectful of his sacrifice to defeat this scourge,' Obama said after the latest in a wave of grizzly filmed murders.
Jordanian state television said that Kassasbeh was killed on January 3.
The slaying would redouble international commitment to ensure the Islamic State group 'are degraded and ultimately defeated,' said Obama.
The extremists seized swathes of territory in Iraq and Syria last year, declaring an Islamic 'caliphate' and committing a wave of atrocities.
Countries as diverse as the United States, Saudi Arabia and Jordan responded with 'Operation Inherent Resolve,' an air-led campaign to pummel the jihadist group.
US Central Command meanwhile admitted that the Islamic State still had the ability 'to conduct small-scale operations,' despite months of air strikes.
But, it said, 'their capacity to do so is degraded and their momentum is stalling.'
Attacks have hit the group's 'ability to command and control forces; recruit, train and retain fighters, produce revenue from oil sales, and maintain morale.'
Islamic State had offered to spare Kassasbeh's life and free a Japanese journalist in return for the release of a female would-be suicide bomber on death row in Jordan.
Jordanian officials announced the female bomber and other jihadists would be executed on Wednesday.
Source: Speisa / Daily Mail Online
