PRESS RELEASE | Jan. 25, 2017
January 25: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR

January 25, 2017
Release # 20170125-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Jan. 24, Coalition military forces conducted 28 strikes consisting of 74 engagements against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq.

In Syria, Coalition military forces conducted 21 strikes consisting of 39 engagements using attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets.

Syria
* Near Ar Raqqah, 20 strikes engaged 11 ISIL tactical units and destroyed 16 oil pump jacks, six oil storage tanks, six fighting positions, four tactical vehicles, two watercraft, a bunker, a VBIED, and a VBIED factory.
* Near Manbij, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed three fighting positions, and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.

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 35 engagements coordinated with and in support of the government of Iraq using attack, fighter, remotely piloted, and rotary aircraft as well as artillery against ISIL targets.

Iraq
* Near Al Qaim, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle.
* Near Mosul, five strikes engaged four ISIL tactical units; destroyed four mortar systems, two vehicles, two weapons caches, an ISIL headquarters, an anti-air artillery system, a fighting position, a supply cache, a tunnel entrance, a VBIED, a VBIED facility, an ISIL guard post, an ISIL-held building, and an IED factory; damaged a supply route; and suppressed an ISIL mortar team.
* Near Tuz, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position and an artillery system.

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.