PRESS RELEASE | Feb. 7, 2017
February 7: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR

February 07, 2017
Release # 20170207-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Feb. 6, Coalition military forces conducted 24 strikes consisting of 70 engagements against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

Syria
In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 17 strikes consisting of 28 engagements using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets.
* Near Abu Kamal, one strike destroyed an oil well head.
* Near Raqqah, six strikes destroyed three tunnels, a weapons facility, a vehicle, and an oil well head.
* Near Ayn Isa, one strike destroyed a VBIED.
* Near Palmyra, nine strikes destroyed 17 heavy equipment vehicles, 11 vehicles, four dump trucks, three front-end loaders, three VBIEDs and two tanks.

Iraq
The Iraqi Security Forces are leading the Coalition’s fight to rid Iraq of ISIL. They are willing to take the brunt of the fighting to liberate their country and do not seek or desire the Coalition’s participation in direct ground combat operations. The Government of Iraq welcomes the Coalition because we are assisting them with our unique capabilities, at their request.

Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted seven strikes consisting of 42 engagements coordinated with and in support of the government of Iraq using fighter aircraft, and artillery against ISIL targets.
* Near Bayji, one strike destroyed two tactical vehicles.
* Near Haditha, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit; destroyed an ISIL-held building, a vehicle and a supply cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit; destroyed an ISIL-held building and a supply cache.
* Near Mosul, four strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units, and an ISIL staging area; destroyed two watercraft, two supply caches, two weapon caches, a barge, a bunker, a dump truck, a front-end loader, a mortar system, a vehicle, a VBIED facility, and an anti-air artillery system; and damaged 16 supply routes and a tunnel.

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 ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIL-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. An engagement is defined as one weapon system delivering one type of munition.
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.