PRESS RELEASE | March 8, 2016
March 8: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
March 8, 2016
Release # 20160308-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On March 7, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes using ground-attack, attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 17 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery, 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 destroyed an ISIL house borne improvised explosive device (HBIED).
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes struck a large ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL gas and oil separation plant modular refinery, and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Mar’a, four strikes struck three ISIL tactical units and an ISIL facility, and destroyed an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL heavy machine gun position, and an ISIL building.
Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL weapons cache, an ISIL staging area, and an ISIL rocket position.
* Near Bayji, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun position.
* Near Fallujah, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED).
* Near Habbaniya, one strike destroyed an ISIL tunnel.
* Near Haditha, one strike destroyed an ISIL supply cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Mosul, three strikes struck two ISIL headquarters and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Qayyarah, one strike struck an ISIL used bridge.
* Near Ramadi, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL mortar position, and two ISIL supply caches.
* Near Sinjar, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL vehicles, and an ISIL artillery piece.
* Near Waleed, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL supply cache.
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, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Coalition nations which have conducted strikes in Syria include Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.