Coalition Strikes Hit ISIL in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release

SOUTHWEST ASIA, December 15, 2015 — U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Strikes in Syria

Attack and remotely piloted aircraft conducted six strikes in Syria:

-- Near Ayn Isa, a strike wounded two ISIL fighters.

-- Near Manbij, two strikes destroyed an ISIL excavator and an ISIL building.

-- Near Mar’a, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units, wounded an ISIL fighter, and destroyed two ISIL fighting positions.

Strikes in Iraq

Fighter and bomber aircraft conducted eight strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:

-- Near Huwayjah, a strike struck an ISIL vehicle bomb factory.

-- Near Ramadi, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, denied ISIL access to terrain, and destroyed three ISIL light machine guns, an ISIL heavy machine gun, four ISIL fighting positions, and an ISIL staging area.

-- Near Sinjar, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units, halted an ISIL vehicle’s movement, and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL heavy machine gun, and an ISIL light machine gun.

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.

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 they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group'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, France, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.