PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 13, 2016
Jan. 13: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
January 13, 2016

Release # 20160113-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 12, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted eight strikes using attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 16 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, bomber, 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 Hasakah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL building.
* Near Ayn Isa, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes destroyed an ISIL excavator and an ISIL oil booster pump generator.
* Near Manbij, one strike destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun.
* Near Tal Abayad, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.

Iraq
* Near Kisik, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL bunkers, an ISIL-used tunnel, eight ISIL assembly areas, an ISIL supply cache, and six ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Mosul, seven strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units, an ISIL headquarters building, an ISIL weapons storage facility, an ISIL security headquarters building, and an ISIL-used bridge, and destroyed an ISIL command and control node, nine ISIL fighting positions, and wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Ramadi, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL bunker, an ISIL vehicle borne explosive device (VBIED), two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL vehicle, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.

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.