PRESS RELEASE | July 27, 2016
July 27: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
July 27, 2016
Release # 20160727-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On July 26, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 12 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery and bomber, 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 Dayr Az Zawr, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Manbij, eight strikes struck eight separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 12 ISIL fighting positions and two ISIL vehicles.
* Near Mar’a, two strikes struck two ISIL headquarters.
* Near Palmyra, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, two strikes destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Albu Hayat, one strike struck an ISIL weapons storage facility.
* Near Hit, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL vehicles and an ISIL bunker.
* Near Qayyarah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL assembly areas, an ISIL vehicle, two ISIL rockets, 33 ISIL rocket rails, and an ISIL heavy machine gun.
* Near Ramadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Sinjar, one strike suppressed three ISIL mortar positions.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
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.