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Coalition Strikes Continue Against ISIL in Syria, Iraq

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U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Iraq and Syria yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 19 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed an oil tanker truck.

-- Near Shadaddi, a strike destroyed a vehicle bomb.

-- Near Raqqah, 15 strikes engaged nine ISIL tactical units; destroyed four vehicle bombs, eight fighting positions, two heavy machine guns and a supply route; and damaged an ISIL tactical vehicle.

-- Near Ayn Isa, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position and an anti-air artillery piece.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, bomber, fighter, remotely piloted and rotary wing aircraft conducted nine strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

-- Near Beiji, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a rocket rail.

-- Near Haditha, two strikes damaged four ISIL defensive berms.

-- Near Kisik, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL tactical vehicle.

-- Near Mosul, three strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units; destroyed three front-end loaders, a bulldozer, five mortars, two supply caches, a truck, inoperable coalition equipment, two vehicle bombs and a barge; suppressed three ISIL mortar teams; and damaged 19 ISIL supply routes and a defensive berm.

-- Near Tal Afar, two strikes destroyed an ISIL highway checkpoint and a vehicle bomb factory.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

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