PRESS RELEASE | June 26, 2016
June 26: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
June 26, 2016
Release # 20160626-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On June 25, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 14 strikes using bomber, attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using 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, three strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and two ISIL tactical vehicles.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes struck an ISIL gas and oil separation plant and destroyed two ISIL oil well heads.
* Near Manbij, eight strikes struck seven separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED), and an ISIL improvised explosive device (IED) and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Mar’a, one strike destroyed an ISIL tactical vehicle.
Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, one strike struck an ISIL staging facility.
* Near Ar Rutbah, one strike struck two ISIL VBIED facilities.
* Near Fallujah, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 10 ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL boat, eight ISIL light machine guns, an ISIL heavy machine gun, an ISIL staging area, an ISIL VBIED, and two ISIL rocket propelled grenade systems and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Mosul, four strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL VBIED storage facility and five bed down locations.
* Near Qayyarah, five strikes struck three ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL boats, an ISIL assembly area, three ISIL vehicles, an ISIL weapons cache, an ISIL VBIED, and an ISIL front-end loader and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Ramadi, two strikes destroyed two ISIL boats and an ISIL front-end loader and an ISIL supply cache.
* Near Sinjar, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and two ISIL assembly areas and damaged an ISIL vehicle.
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.
Ground-based artillery fired in counter-fire or in fire support to maneuver roles are not classified as a strike as defined by CJTF-OIR.
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.