January 4: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

January 4, 2017
Release # 20170104-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 3, Coalition military forces conducted 27 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 21 strikes using attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted six strikes coordinated with and in support of the government of Iraq using attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft as well as rocket artillery against ISIL targets.

Syria
. Near Al Shadaddi, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units; destroyed a VBIED, a VBIED storage facility, and a fighting position; and damaged a repeater box and communications tower.
. Near Ar Raqqah, seven strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units; destroyed a VBIED, a VBIED storage facility, a weapons cache, and 11 fighting positions; and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
. Near Al Tanf, one strike destroyed an ISIL repeater box, two repeater antennas, and two solar panels.
. Near Ayn Isa, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units, destroyed a fighting position, and disabled an ISIL armored vehicle.
. Near Dayr Az Zawr, seven strikes destroyed two excavators, one bulldozer, two oil well heads, 13 oil construction vehicles, four cranes, a piece of engineering equipment, and seven front-end loaders.

Iraq
. Near Al Huwayjah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed a pickup truck, and a VBIED storage facility.
. Near Bayji, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
. Near Mosul, three strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units; destroyed two mortars, a tactical vehicle, and two command and control nodes; damaged two supply routes, and suppressed nine mortar teams and an ISIL tactical unit.

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.