January 18, 2016
Release # 20160118-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 17, coalition military forces
continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition
military forces conducted 10 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted
aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 25 strikes
coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack,
fighter, 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, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an
ISIL underground facility.
* Near Al Hasakah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an
ISIL building and wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Ayn Isa, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL mortar system.
* Near Manbij, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed seven ISIL vehicles and wounded five ISIL fighters.
* Near Mar'a, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and an ISIL
headquarters building.
Iraq
* Near Kisik, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Mosul, 10 strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units, an ISIL
communications facility, and an ISIL-used culvert and destroyed five ISIL
fighting positions, two ISIL assembly areas, two ISIL weapons caches, and an
ISIL excavator.
* Near Ramadi, eight strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL
vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL
tactical vehicle, an ISIL command and control node, an ISIL building, cratered
two ISIL-used roads, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Qayyarah, three strikes struck two ISIL-used culverts and denied ISIL
access to terrain.
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.