December 23, 2015
Release # 20151223-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Dec. 22, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL
terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces
conducted eight strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted
aircraft. In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 24 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 Al Hawl, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed an ISIL building, an ISIL vehicle, four ISIL fighting
positions, and an ISIL rocket system.
* Near Al Hasakah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Manbij, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Mar'a, two strikes destroyed two ISIL heavy machine guns and two ISIL mortar systems.
* Near Ar Raqqah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
Iraq
* Near Al Huwayjah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Habbaniyah, five strikes struck four ISIL staging areas and an ISIL headquarters.
*
Near Mosul, eight strikes struck six separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed an ISIL building, an ISIL crane, an ISIL bulldozer, two ISIL
excavators, two ISIL vehicles, five ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL
heavy machine gun, an ISIL light machine gun, an ISIL checkpoint, and
wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Ramadi, four strikes struck two
separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL bunker, 19 ISIL
fighting positions, three ISIL sniper positions, an ISIL anti-air
artillery piece, four ISIL RPG positions, two ISIL recoilless rifles,
two ISIL grenade launcher positions, two ISIL heavy machine gun
positions, three ISIL command and control nodes, two ISIL bed down
locations, an ISIL staging area, cratered an ISIL-used road, and denied
ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Fallujah, one strike destroyed an ISIL bunker.
* Near Kisik, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike struck 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 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.