December 17, 2015
Release # 20151217-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Dec. 16, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL
terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces
conducted seven strikes using attack, bomber, and remotely piloted
aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 11
strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using
attack, fighter, bomber, 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 Ar Raqqah, three strikes struck an ISIL financial building, an ISIL headquarters building, and an ISIL training camp.
* Near Al Hawl, one strike destroyed an ISIL artillery piece.
* Near Manbij, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed four ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL bunkers.
* Near Mar'a, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and damaged an ISIL fighting position.
Iraq
*
Near Fallujah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an
ISIL sniper position, an ISIL tunnel, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an
ISIL RPG system, and wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Hit, one strike destroyed an ISIL home-made explosives cache.
* Near Kirkuk, one strike destroyed an ISIL excavator.
*
Near Mosul, two strikes struck multiple large ISIL tactical units and
three suicide bombers and destroyed 12 ISIL machine guns, 13 ISIL
fighting positions, six ISIL vehicles, and an ISIL vehicle borne
improvised explosive device (VBIED).
* Near Ramadi, four strikes
struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL machine
gun, three ISIL fighting positions, five ISIL buildings, three ISIL
staging areas, and an ISIL VBIED.
* Near Sinjar, two strikes
struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL
fighting positions and an ISIL machine gun.
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.