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Strikes Hit ISIL Terrorists 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 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

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, three strikes destroyed six oil tanker trucks, two vehicles, and an oil pump jack, and damaged a vehicle and another oil tanker truck.

-- Near Ar Raqqah, two strikes destroyed three oil tanker trucks, two oil pump jacks, a bulldozer, and an oil wellhead.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed 24 oil tanker trucks and two oil wellheads.

-- Near Manbij, three strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units and destroyed two fighting positions, a command and control node, a mortar system, and a vehicle.

-- Near Mar’a, two strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed a vehicle, a command and control node, a fighting position, and a heavy machine gun.

-- Near Washiyah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two vehicles.     

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, bomber, fighter, rotary and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 11 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

-- Near Al Qaim, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle.

-- Near Hit, a strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.

-- Near Mosul, six strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units and destroyed four ISIL-held buildings, two vehicles, two front-end loaders, two weapons caches and three tunnels entrances.               

-- Near Ramadi, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building and a weapons cache.         

-- Near Sultan Abdallah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three vehicles.      

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.

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