March 26, 2016
Release # 20160326-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST
ASIA — On March 25, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL
terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces
conducted four strikes using attack aircraft against ISIL targets.
Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted 22 strikes
coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket
artillery and ground-attack, 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 Ayn Isa, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle borne improvised
explosive device (VBIED) and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
*
Near Mar'a, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed an ISIL artillery piece and three ISIL fighting positions.
Iraq
* Near Fallujah, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units.
*
Near Hit, five strikes struck an ISIL improvised weapons factory, an
ISIL communications facility, an ISIL weapons storage facility and two
separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL vehicles and an ISIL
fighting position.
* Near Kisik, two strikes destroyed an ISIL
artillery piece and suppressed an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL
mortar position.
* Near Mosul, four strikes struck two separate
ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL supply caches and three ISIL
assembly areas and suppressed two ISIL mortar positions.
* Near
Qayyarah, six strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units and
destroyed three ISIL mortar positions, an ISIL artillery piece, an ISIL
supply cache, an ISIL vehicle, and five ISIL assembly areas and
suppressed an ISIL mortar position.
* Near Sinjar, one strike
struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun
position and an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, two
strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL
fighting position 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.
Ground-based
artillery fired in counter-fire or in fire support to maneuver roles
are not classified as an operational 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, France, Jordan, the Netherlands,
Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the
United States.