PRESS RELEASE | March 24, 2016
March 24: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
March 24, 2016

Release # 20160324-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On March 23, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted eight strikes using ground-attack, attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 26 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery and 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 Al Hawl, two strikes destroyed two ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Manbij, four strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed four ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL mortar position.
* Near Mar’a, one strike destroyed three ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Palmyra, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.

Iraq
* Near Hit, three strikes struck an ISIL weapons storage facility and an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL rocket rail and five ISIL bunkers.
* Near Kirkuk, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL command and control node, and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike destroyed an ISIL tunnel.
* Near Mosul, eight strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), and six ISIL assembly areas and suppressed an ISIL mortar position.
* Near Qayyarah, three strikes struck an ISIL communication facility and destroyed an ISIL used bridge section and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Ramadi, one strike denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Sinjar, five strikes struck five ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and four ISIL assembly areas.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL mortar position and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Tal Afar, two strikes destroyed an ISIL assembly area and suppressed an ISIL mortar position.

Strike assessments are based on initial reports. All aircraft returned to base safely.

Additionally, on the March 23 release, a strike was duplicated in Hit, Iraq due to administrative error. The following is a summary of the correct strikes in Hit, Syria from the March 23 release:

Iraq
* Near Hit, one strike destroyed two ISIL staging areas and two ISIL supply caches.

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.