PRESS RELEASE | May 1, 2016
May 1: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
May 01, 2016

Release # 20160501-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On April 30, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted two strikes using attack and remotely piloted aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, Coalition military forces conducted 26 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using rocket artillery and bomber and fighter aircraft against ISIL targets.

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

Syria
* Near Mar’a, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.

Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, two strikes destroyed an ISIL mortar system and five ISIL bed down locations.
* Near Al Qaim, one strike struck an ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) facility.
* Near Albu Hayat, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Bayji, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Fallujah, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position, an ISIL supply cache, and an ISIL front end loader.
* Near Hit, four strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL heavy machine guns, an ISIL anti-air artillery system, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) site, an ISIL bunker, an ISIL tunnel entrance, and an ISIL VBIED storage facility and denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Kirkuk, two strikes struck two separate large ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position, four ISIL assembly areas, five ISIL vehicles, two ISIL VBIEDs, two ISIL mortar positions, an ISIL mortar system, an ISIL bunker, and an ISIL supply cache.
* Near Kisik, one strike suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Mosul, six strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL heavy machine guns, two ISIL mortar systems, two ISIL vehicles, and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Ramadi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position, five ISIL heavy machine guns, four ISIL mortar systems, and an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike immobilized two ISIL excavators.

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.