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Counter-ISIL Strikes Hit Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

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U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of yesterday’s strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIL Terrorists
Operation Inherent Resolve
Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIL Terrorists
Photo By: DoD Graphic
VIRIN: 160401-D-XT155-002

Strikes in Syria

Bomber, attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 17 strikes in Syria:

-- Near Shadadi, 10 strikes struck 10 separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed six fighting positions, a tactical vehicle, three vehicle bombs, four mortar positions, an anti-air artillery system and an armored personnel carrier.

-- Near Raqqah, a strike struck an ISIL weapons assembly area.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes destroyed two ISIL oil tanker trucks, two cranes, three bulldozers and damaged another bulldozer.

-- Near Manbij, four strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed a vehicle.

Strikes in Iraq

Fighter aircraft, remotely piloted aircraft and rocket artillery conducted four strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:

-- Near Hit, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed a fighting position and damaged another fighting position.

-- Near Ramadi, two strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, and destroyed a fighting position and a mortar system.

-- Near Sinjar, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.

Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do 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 counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat it poses to Iraq, Syria, the region and the wider international community. The destruction of targets in Syria and Iraq further limits ISIL's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said.

Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include the United States, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

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