PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 18, 2016
Jan. 18: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
January 18, 2016

Release # 20160118-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 17, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 25 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 Ar Raqqah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL underground facility.
* Near Al Hasakah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL building and wounded an ISIL fighter.
* Near Ayn Isa, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL mortar system.
* Near Manbij, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed seven ISIL vehicles and wounded five ISIL fighters.
* Near Mar’a, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and an ISIL headquarters building.

Iraq
* Near Kisik, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Mosul, 10 strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units, an ISIL communications facility, and an ISIL-used culvert and destroyed five ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL assembly areas, two ISIL weapons caches, and an ISIL excavator.
* Near Ramadi, eight strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL tactical vehicle, an ISIL command and control node, an ISIL building, cratered two ISIL-used roads, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Qayyarah, three strikes struck two ISIL-used culverts 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.

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.