PRESS RELEASE | Nov. 18, 2016
November 18: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR

November 18, 2016
Release # 20161118-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Nov. 17, Coalition military forces conducted 28 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 16 strikes using attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft, and rocket artillery against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted 12 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft, and rocket artillery against ISIL targets.

Syria

* Near Al Raqqah, three strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL-held buildings, a fighting position, and oil production equipment.
* Near Ayn Isa, 10 strikes engaged three ISIL tactical units; destroyed seven fighting positions, two vehicles, a VBIED, a checkpoint, a bunker; and damaged a supply route.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes destroyed three oil well heads, three oil tanker trucks, and oil production equipment, and damaged two supply routes.

Iraq

* Near Al Huwayjah, two strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL-held buildings, two tunnels, and a vehicle.
* Near Al Qaim, two strikes destroyed an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike destroyed a mortar system and suppressed a bunker.
* Near Mosul, five strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units; destroyed five mortar systems, two ISIL-held buildings; damaged a fighting position, a tunnel, and a bunker; and suppressed a mortar system.
* Near Rawah, one strike destroyed a bunker.
* Near Sinjar, one strike engaged 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. The information used to compile the daily strike releases is based on ‘Z’ or Greenwich Mean Time.

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.