PRESS RELEASE | Aug. 22, 2016
August 20: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Iraq and Syria
CJTF-OIR
Southwest Asia –
August 20, 2016
Release # 20160820-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Aug. 19, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 19 strikes using bomber, ground-attack, attack, and fighter aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using bomber and fighter aircraft against ISIL targets.
The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:
Syria
* Near Near Abu Kamal, two strikes destroyed an ISIL oil workover rig and five ISIL oil tankers.
* Near Ar Raqqah, one strike destroyed an ISIL oil crane and an ISIL oil tanker.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, one strike destroyed two ISIL pump jacks.
* Near Manbij, six strikes struck six separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Mar’a, nine strikes struck five separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device, seven ISIL IEDs, and two ISIL mortar systems.
Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Kisik, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position and suppressed two ISIL mortar firing positions.
* Near Mosul, two strikes struck an ISIL beddown location and destroyed 39 ISIL oil tanker trucks and two ISIL vehicles.
* Near Qayyarah, one strike destroyed two ISIL mortar systems, five ISIL assembly areas, an ISIL bulldozer, two ISIL rocket rails, an ISIL rocket system and suppressed an ISIL mortar firing position and an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Ramadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed and ISIL mortar system.
* Near Sinjar, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
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, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.