PRESS RELEASE | Sept. 9, 2016
September 9: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR

September 9, 2016
Release # 20160909-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA – On Sept. 8, coalition military forces conducted 14 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes using attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted five strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using 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, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and an anti-air artillery system.
* Near Dayz Az Zawr, six strikes damaged 10 ISIL supply routes.
* Near Mar’a, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.

Iraq

* Near Haditha, one strike destroyed two ISIL vehicles and an artillery cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike destroyed two ISIL rocket rails and a fighting position.
* Near Mosul, two strikes destroyed an ISIL fighting position, a tunnel entrance, and a VBIED factory.
* Near Tallafar, one strike destroyed an VBIED factory.

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.