PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 23, 2016
Jan. 23: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
January 23, 2016
Release # 20160123-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 22, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted four strikes using fighter and attack aircraft. Separately in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 20 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 Ayn Isa, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Manbij, one strike cratered two ISIL-used roads.
* Near Washiyah, one strike struck an ISIL headquarters.
* Near Al Hawl, one strike destroyed an ISIL bunker.
Iraq
* Near Kisik, six strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 11 ISIL rockets, three ISIL vehicles, five ISIL assembly areas, and suppressed an ISIL mortar position.
* Near Makhmur, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL improvised explosive device (IED) factory.
* Near Ramadi, six strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL front end loader, two ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED), an ISIL staging area, three ISIL fighting positions, three ISIL heavy machine gun positions, an ISIL building, an ISIL vehicle, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, four strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed five ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL mortar tube, and two ISIL light machine gun positions.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike suppressed an ISIL light machine gun 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.