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Military Strikes Continue Against ISIS Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

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U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 26 strikes consisting of 66 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

U.S. Central Command continues to work with partner nations to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
Operation Inherent Resolve - Targeted Operations Against ISIS Terrorists
U.S. Central Command continues to work with partner nations to conduct targeted airstrikes in Iraq and Syria as part of the comprehensive strategy to degrade and defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.
Photo By: DoD Graphic
VIRIN: 170113-D-ZZ999-001

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

Strikes in Syria

In Syria, coalition military forces conducted 18 strikes consisting of 25 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, four strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed four ISIS wellheads, an ISIS oil storage tank, an ISIS oil tanker truck and a vehicle.

-- Near Raqqa, 11 strikes engaged nine ISIS tactical units and destroyed five vehicles, a tunnel, a mortar system, a weapons cache, a vehicle-borne-bomb factory and a fighting position.

-- Near Tabqah, three strikes engaged two ISIS tactical units and destroyed two fighting positions, an ISIS oil separator tank and an ISIS headquarters.

Additionally, four strikes in Syria were conducted on May 28 that closed within the last 24 hours:

-- Near Raqqa, four strikes destroyed a weapons cache, an ISIS staging area and three fighting positions.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted eight strikes consisting of 41 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Beiji, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two vehicles and a vehicle-borne bomb staging area.

-- Near Mosul, four strikes engaged four ISIS tactical units and destroyed 34 vehicles, seven fighting positions, three vehicle-borne bombs, two mortar systems, two heavy machine guns, a medium machine gun and a supply cache and damaged an ISIS-held building, an ISIS supply route and a fighting position.

-- Near Rawah, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed an ISIS-held building.

-- Near Tal Afar, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two cave entrances and an ISIS staging area.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

These strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to destroy ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The destruction of ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria also further limits the group's ability to project terror and conduct external operations throughout the region and the rest of the world, task force officials said. 

The list above contains all strikes conducted by fighter, attack, bomber, rotary-wing or remotely piloted aircraft; rocket-propelled artillery; and some ground-based tactical artillery when fired on planned targets, officials noted.

Ground-based artillery fired in counterfire or in fire support to maneuver roles is not classified as a strike, they added. A strike, as defined by the coalition, refers to one or more kinetic engagements that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single or cumulative effect. For example, task force officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIS vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against a group of ISIS-held buildings and weapon systems in a compound, having the cumulative effect of making that facility harder or impossible to use. Strike assessments are based on initial reports and may be refined, officials said.

The task force 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.

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