PRESS RELEASE | Sept. 29, 2016
September 29: Military airstrikes continue against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq
CJTFOIR
September 29, 2016
Release # 20160929-01
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SOUTHWEST ASIA – On Sept. 28, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes against ISIL terrorists in Syria and Iraq. In Syria, coalition military forces conducted eight strikes using attack and fighter aircraft against ISIL targets. Additionally in Iraq, coalition military forces conducted 10 strikes coordinated with and in support of the Government of Iraq using attack, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery against ISIL targets.
The following is a summary of the strikes conducted against ISIL since the last press release:
Syria
* Near Abu Kamal, two strikes destroyed two ISIL oil tanker trucks, an oil well head, and a pump jack and damaged three supply routes.
* Near Ar Raqqah, one strike destroyed two ISIL oil well heads.
* Near Dayr Az Zawr, one strike destroyed an oil tanker truck.
* Near Manbij, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Mar’a, three strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an IED, a fighting position, and a mortar system.
Iraq
* Near Al Qaim, one strike destroyed an ISIL VBIED facility.
* Near Bayji, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position.
* Near Haditha, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit.
* Near Kisik, two strikes destroyed an ISIL fighting position and suppressed two ISIL mortar firing positions.
* Near Mosul, four strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units and destroyed a front-end loader, a weapons cache, and a vehicle.
* Near Ramadi, one strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and two trench systems.
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, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, and the United States.