PRESS RELEASE | March 2, 2016
March 2: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
March 2, 2016
Release # 20160302-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA — On Mar. 1, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 14 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using 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 Al Hawl, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Ar Raqqah, one strike struck an ISIL security headquarters.
* Near Manbij, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL buildings and two ISIL mortar positions.
* Near Mar’a, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
Iraq
* Near Al Qaim, one strike struck an ISIL headquarters.
* Near Albu Hayat, one strike suppressed an ISIL artillery piece.
* Near Bayji, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Fallujah, three strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Habbaniyah, one strike destroyed an ISIL vehicle.
* Near Mosul, three strikes struck an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) facility and an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL vehicles and two ISIL assembly areas.
* Near Ramadi, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units.
* Near Sinjar, two strikes destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.
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 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.