PRESS RELEASE | Feb. 15, 2017
February 15: Military airstrikes continue against ISIS terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR

February 15, 2017
Release # 20170215-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Feb. 14, Coalition military forces conducted 22 strikes consisting of 42 engagements against ISIS terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Syria
In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 17 strikes consisting of 21 engagements using attack, bomber, and fighter aircraft against ISIS targets.

* Near Abu Kamal, seven strikes destroyed seven oil refinement stills, five oil storage tanks and three oil wellheads.

* Near Ar Raqqah, four strikes destroyed an ISIS headquarters; and damaged two supply routes and a bridge.

* Near Dayr Az Zawr, six strikes destroyed five oil pump jacks, five oil wellheads, three oil storage tanks, two oil refinement stills and an oil tanker truck.

Iraq
Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted five strikes consisting of 21 engagements coordinated with and in support of the government of Iraq using fighter and rocket artillery against ISIS targets.

* Near Kisik, two strikes damaged a tunnel.

* Near Mosul, three strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed three VBIED facilities, two IED facilities, a weapons facility, an ISIS-held building, an excavator, a supply cache, and a command and control node; damaged five supply routes and a supply cache; and suppressed three mortar teams.

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 engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative effect for that location.

For example, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility 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 ISIS terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, and the wider international community.

The destruction of ISIS 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.