PRESS RELEASE | May 13, 2016
May 13: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
May 13, 2016

Release # 20160513-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SOUTHWEST ASIA — On May 12, coalition military forces continued to attack ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes using attack, fighter, bomber, 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 rocket artillery and bomber, 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 Shadaddi, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Manbij, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed five ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Mar’a, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL fighting position, and an ISIL mortar position.
* Near Tamakh, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle and an ISIL bunker and damaged a separate ISIL bunker.
* Near Waleed, one strike suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.

Iraq
* Near Al Baghdadi, one strike destroyed an ISIL fighting position and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Albu Hayat, one strike struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed four ISIL fighting positions.
* Near Bashir, one strike denied ISIL access to terrain.
* Near Fallujah, one strike destroyed four ISIL tunnel systems and an ISIL weapons cache.
* Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL assembly area.
* Near Qayyarah, three strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed three ISIL vehicles and five ISIL rocket rails.
* Near Ramadi, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL tactical vehicles, two ISIL vehicle borne improvised explosive devices (VBIED), five ISIL vehicles, and an ISIL fighting position.
* Near Sinjar, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL heavy machine gun.
* Near Sultan Abdallah, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL rocket rail, an ISIL vehicle, and an ISIL mortar system.
* Near Tal Afar, one strike suppressed an ISIL mortar position.

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.