December 8: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

December 8, 2016
Release # 20161208-02
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Dec. 7, Coalition military forces conducted 23 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 12 strikes using attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted 11 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets.

Syria
* Near Ar Raqqah, six strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and a staging area; destroyed a mortar system, a fighting position, and a training camp; and damaged two supply routes.
* Near Ayn Isa, two strikes destroyed an ISIL road block and damaged four supply routes.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes destroyed 17 oil tanker trucks and three oil wellheads.
* Near Manbij, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
Iraq
* Near Al Qaim, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL-held buildings.
* Near Baghdad, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Bayji, one strike destroyed an ISIL mortar cache.
* Near Mosul, five strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units; destroyed 11 armored vehicles, five vehicles, four ISIL-held buildings, three VBIEDs, two fighting positions, two mortar systems, a VBIED facility, a front-end loader, and an artillery system; damaged three supply routes, three ISIL-held buildings, and an armored vehicle; and suppressed five tactical units.
* Near Ramadi, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Rawah, two strikes destroyed an ISIL bunker and a mounted artillery system.

Strike assessments are based on initial reports. All aircraft returned to base safely.

A strike, as defined in the CJTF releases, means one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative effect for that location.
So having a single aircraft deliver a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of buildings and vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making that facility (or facilities) harder or impossible to use.
Accordingly, CJTF-OIR 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. The information used to compile the daily strike releases is based on 'Z' or Greenwich Mean Time.
Ground-based artillery fired in counter-fire or in fire support to maneuver roles are not classified as a strike as defined by CJTF-OIR.

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 group's ability to project terror and conduct operations. Coalition nations which have conducted strikes in Iraq include Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Coalition nations which have conducted strikes in Syria include Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.