PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 20, 2016
Jan. 20: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
January 20, 2016
Release # 20160120-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 19, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 14 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:
Iraq
* Near Habbaniyah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL building.
* Near Haditha, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL vehicles.
* Near Kisik, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed ten ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Mosul, three strikes destroyed nine ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL command and control node, and two ISIL assembly areas.
* Near Ramadi, six strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL mortar system, three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL RPG system, two ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED), an ISIL building, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL tunnel entrance, two ISIL petroleum oil and lubricant trucks, an ISIL front end loader, suppressed an ISIL mortar system, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed four ISIL command and control nodes.
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.