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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 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.

Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIL Terrorists
Operation Inherent Resolve
Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIL Terrorists
Photo By: DoD Graphic
VIRIN: 160401-D-XT155-002

Strikes in Syria

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 20 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed seven ISIL oil storage tanks and two oil wellheads.

-- Near Shadaddi, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed a vehicle.

-- Near Raqqah, five strikes destroyed two ISIL oil pump jacks, two oil wellheads, a crane and an oil tanker truck. Four supply routes were damaged.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes destroyed an ISIL oil tanker truck and damaged four supply routes.

-- Near Manbij, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position.

-- Near Mara, seven strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units and destroyed three fighting positions, two vehicle bombs, a heavy machine gun and a vehicle.

Strikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft, as well as rocket artillery, conducted 14 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

-- Near Beiji, a strike destroyed an ISIL weapons cache and damaged a vehicle.

-- Near Hit, a strike destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun.

-- Near Kisik, a strike destroyed two tunnel entrances and suppressed a mortar firing position.

-- Near Mosul, four strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL headquarters buildings and a front-end loader.

-- Near Ramadi, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and a staging area, and destroyed four vehicles, a fuel truck, three ISIL-held buildings, a weapons cache, a supply cache and a mortar system.

-- Near Rawah, a strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle storage area.

-- Near Sultan Abdallah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroying five ISIL-held buildings and four repeater tower generators. A light machine gun was suppressed.

-- Near Tal Afar, two strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units, destroying two tunnel entrances, two ISIL-held buildings and a vehicle. A sniper firing position was suppressed.

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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