September 17: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

September 17, 2016
Release # 20160917-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA – On Sept. 16, coalition military forces conducted 25 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes using attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery against ISIL targets.

The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:

Syria

* Near Abu Kamal, five strikes damaged 10 ISIL supply routes and destroyed two oil well heads.
* Near Al Shadaddi, four strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed six fighting positions, two vehicles, a weapons cache, and a front-end loader.
* Near Ar Raqqah, two strikes destroyed an ISIL training compound, an oil well head, an oil pump jack, and two oil storage tanks.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, one strike damaged five ISIL supply routes.
* Near Mar'a, six strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units, three fighting positions, two tunnels, two command and control nodes, and a mortar system.

Iraq

* Near Hit, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a building.
* Near Mosul, two strikes destroyed eight ISIL fighting positions and damaged a tunnel entrance.
* Near Qayyarah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle, a weapons cache, and 29 watercraft.
* Near Ramadi, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and a staging area and destroyed a fighting position and a building.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike damaged an ISIL tunnel.

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, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.