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Press Release | March 31, 2016

March 31: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

March 31, 2016
Release # 20160331-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA On March 30, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted two strikes using attack and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted 25 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery and 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 Al Hawl, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Mar'a, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL defensive fighting positions.

Iraq
* Near Habbaniyah, one strike damaged an ISIL defensive fighting position.
* Near Haditha, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Hit, three strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL safe house and destroyed two ISIL supply caches, 15 ISIL rockets, three ISIL bunkers, and an ISIL tunnel.
* Near Kirkuk, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed five ISIL assembly areas and an ISIL bed down location.
* Near Mosul, eight strikes struck five separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL assembly areas, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL bed down location, two ISIL safe houses, an ISIL fighting position, and suppressed two ISIL mortar firing positions.
* Near Qayyarah, four strikes struck an ISIL improvised explosive device (IED) factory and an ISIL communications facility and destroyed an ISIL mortar position and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, four strikes destroyed four ISIL assembly areas, five ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL tunnel system, and an ISIL improvised ferry system.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike struck an ISIL communications facility.

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 a 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.