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Counter-ISIL Strikes Hit Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

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U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, conducting 27 strikes consisting of 89 engagements against ISIS targets yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

U.S. Central Command continues to work with partner nations to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIS Terrorists
U.S. Central Command continues to work with partner nations to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
Photo By: DoD Graphic
VIRIN: 170113-D-ZZ999-001

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

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes consisting of 35 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, four strikes destroyed two ISIS pumpjacks and two wellheads.

-- Near Tabqah, 14 strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed five vehicles, two fighting positions and a vehicle bomb; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.

And, an additional seven strikes were conducted in Syria from April 7-8, which have been closed within the last 24 hours:

-- On April 7 near Tabqah, six strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and suppressed five fighting positions, an ISIS tactical unit and a sniper team.

-- On April 7 near Tanf, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed 10 fighting positions.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes consisting of 54 engagements against ISIS targets, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

-- Near Mosul, five strikes engaged five ISIS tactical units; destroyed five fighting positions, five mortar systems, three medium machine guns and a vehicle; damaged 22 supply routes; and suppressed four mortar teams.

-- Near Qaim, three strikes destroyed five fuel trucks and three explosives caches.

-- Near Taji, a strike engaged an ISIS staging area, destroyed two ISIS-held buildings and damaged a supply route.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said.

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect. For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

The task force does 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.

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