February 22, 2016
Release # 20160222-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Feb. 21, coalition military forces
continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition
military forces conducted 14 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely
piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military
forces conducted five strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government
of Iraq using fighter aircraft against ISIL targets.
The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last
press release:
Syria
* Near Al Hasakah, seven strikes struck five separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed an ISIL fighting position, four ISIL buildings, four ISIL vehicles,
and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
* Near Al Hawl, two strikes destroyed two ISIL-used bridges.
* Near Ayn Isa, two strikes destroyed three ISIL buildings and two ISIL
fighting positions and suppressed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes struck three ISIL-used logistics routes.
Iraq
* Near Fallujah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and suppressed an ISIL
fighting position.
* Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL
vehicle.
* Near Ramadi, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an
ISIL staging area.
* Near Sinjar, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and suppressed an ISIL
heavy machine gun position.
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.