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Press Release | Dec. 13, 2015

Dec. 13: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

December 13, 2015
Release # 20151213-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Dec. 12, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes using attack and remotely piloted aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 15 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using fighter, bomber, attack and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets.

The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:

Syria
* Near Abu Kamal, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Ar Raqqah, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL vehicles and wounded two ISIL fighters.
* Near Ayn Isa, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed seven ISIL buildings.
* Near Manbij, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Mar'a, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL staging area and damaged two others.

Iraq
* Near Fallujah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) facilities, two ISIL staging locations, and five ISIL buildings.
* Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL bunker.
* Near Qayyarah, two strikes destroyed two ISIL VBIED facilities.
* Near Ramadi, six strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle, two ISIL command and control nodes, an ISIL assembly area, two ISIL fighting positions, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Rawah, one strike struck an ISIL VBIED facility.
* Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed an ISIL checkpoint.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and four ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.

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 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, Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Coalition nations which have conducted strikes in Syria include Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.