U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.
Officials reported details of yesterday’s strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.
Strikes in Syria
Remotely piloted, attack, bomber and fighter aircraft conducted 21 strikes consisting of 39 engagements in Syria:
-- Near Raqqah, 20 strikes engaged 11 ISIL tactical units and destroyed 16 oil pump jacks, six oil storage tanks, six fighting positions, four tactical vehicles, two watercraft, a bunker, a vehicle improvised bomb, and a vehicle improvised bomb factory.
-- Near Manbij, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed three fighting positions, and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
Strikes in Iraq
Artillery, as well as attack, fighter, remotely piloted and rotary aircraft conducted seven strikes consisting of 35 engagements in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:
-- Near Qaim, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle.
-- Near Mosul, five strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units; destroyed four mortar systems, two vehicles, two weapons caches, an ISIL headquarters, an anti-air artillery system, a fighting position, a supply cache, a tunnel entrance, a vehicle improvised bomb, a vehicle improvised bomb-making facility, an ISIL guard post, an ISIL-held building, and an improvised bomb factory; damaged a supply route; and suppressed an ISIL mortar team.
-- Near Tuz, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position and an artillery system.
Iraqi security forces are leading the coalition’s fight to rid Iraq of ISIL. They are willing to take the brunt of the fighting to liberate their country and do not seek or desire the coalition's participation in direct ground combat operations. The government of Iraq welcomes the coalition because we are assisting them with our unique capabilities, at their request.
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 it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.
Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.