October 8: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq

Release No: 16-099 Oct. 9, 2016 PRINT | E-MAIL

October 8, 2016
Release # 20161008-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA – On Oct. 7, coalition military forces conducted 24 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 13 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 11 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 Abu Kamal, three strikes destroyed an ISIL oil well head, an oil storage tank, and an oil pump jack and damaged five supply routes.
* Near Al Shadaddi, four strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units and destroyed two fighting positions, two ISIL-held buildings, and a vehicle.
* Near Ar Raqqah, three strikes destroyed four ISIL oil pump jacks and two oil well heads.
* Near Mar'a, one strike damaged an ISIL VBIED facility.
* Near Washiyah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building and a command and control node.

Iraq
* Near Hit, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed five vehicles and a weapons cache.
* Near Kisik, two strikes destroyed two ISIL tunnel entrances, a bunker, and a mortar system and suppressed a mortar firing position.
* Near Mosul, five strikes engaged five ISIL tactical units and destroyed four ISIL-held buildings and two vehicles.
* Near Qayyarah, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit; destroyed a mortar system and a watercraft; and suppressed a mortar firing position.
* Near Ramadi, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL-held building, a tunnel, and a vehicle.

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 information used to compile the daily strike releases is based on 'Z' or Greenwich Mean Time.

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.

CJTFOIR