PRESS RELEASE | June 7, 2016
June 7: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
June 07, 2016
Release # 20160607-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On June 6, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes using bomber, attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 17 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using bomber, 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 Manbij, 15 strikes struck 13 separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed seven ISIL fighting positions, four ISIL vehicles, an ISIL cave entrance, and an ISIL command and control node.
• Near Mar’a, three strikes struck a large ISIL tactical unit, an ISIL command and control node, and an ISIL headquarters and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
Iraq
• Near Bayji, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL mortar system.
• Near Fallujah, four strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) factory and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL weapons cache, three ISIL heavy machine guns, and an ISIL front end loader and damaged an ISIL fighting position and denied ISIL access to terrain.
• Near Habbaniyah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
• Near Haditha, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
• Near Kisik, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed five ISIL weapons caches, two ISIL bed down locations, and an ISIL command and control node.
• Near Mosul, three strikes struck an ISIL oil tanker storage area, an ISIL logistics facility, and an ISIL VBIED factory.
• Near Qayyarah, two strikes destroyed seven ISIL rocket rails.
• Near Rawah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
• Near Sinjar, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
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.