PRESS RELEASE | July 23, 2016
July 23: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
July 23, 2016

Release # 20160723-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On July 22, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 13 strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted ten strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery and attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets.

The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:

Syria
* Near Ar Raqqah, two strikes destroyed three ISIL command and control nodes.
* Near Ayn Isa, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL checkpoint.
* Near Manbij, nine strikes struck nine separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 12 ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, one strike destroyed an ISIL oil well head and an ISIL drilling rig.

Iraq
* Near Albu Hayat, one strike destroyed an ISIL mortar system.
* Near Habbaniyah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Mosul, three strikes struck three ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL unmanned aerial vehicle, an ISIL mortar system, ISIL-used engineering equipment, an ISIL tunnel system, and two ISIL assembly areas and suppressed and ISIL rocket position.
* Near Ramadi, one strike destroyed an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Tuz, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Ar Rutbah, one strike struck an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device storage facility.
* Near Qayyarah, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike destroyed an ISIL weapons storage facility.

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, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.