PRESS RELEASE | Sept. 15, 2016
September 15: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR
September 15, 2016
Release # 20160915-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA – On Sept. 14, coalition military forces conducted 20 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes using attack, bomber, and fighter aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery against ISIL targets.
The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:
Syria
* Near Abu Kamal, seven strikes destroyed 21 ISIL supply routes, an oil well head, and two oil tanker trucks.
* Near Dayz Az Zawr, one strike destroyed an ISIL oil well head and an oil tanker truck.
* Near Mar’a, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two fighting positions and a mortar system.
Iraq
* Near Al Huwayjah, two strikes engaged an ISIL chemical weapons storage facility and destroyed a rocket system, a rocket rail, and a mortar system.
* Near Al Qaim, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a building.
* Near Mosul, one strike engaged an ISIL IED factory.
* Near Qayyarah, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three mortar systems, a fighting position, four rocket rails, a tunnel, and inoperable coalition equipment.
* Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed an ISIL tractor trailer, a front-end loader, and a fighting position.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, four strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, two headquarters buildings, and a VBIED factory; destroyed 25 watercraft, a headquarters building, and a VBIED factory; and suppressed a mortar position.
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.