Inherent Resolve Strikes Target ISIL Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

SOUTHWEST ASIA, December 26, 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 five strikes in Syria:

-- Near Raqqah, one strike wounded an ISIL fighter.

-- Near Manbij, three strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL building and wounded an ISIL fighter.

-- Near Mara, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

Fighter and bomber aircraft conducted 12 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:

-- Near Fallujah, two strikes destroyed two ISIL tunnels and two ISIL improvised explosive device factories and wounded an ISIL fighter.

-- Near Mosul, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.

-- Near Qayyarah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL fighting position.

-- Near Ramadi, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed two ISIL tactical vehicles, six ISIL fighting positions, four ISIL vehicles, two ISIL vehicle-borne IED factories, two ISIL heavy machine gun positions, an ISIL sniper position and two houses ISIL had rigged with explosives, and two ISIL fighters were wounded.

-- Near Sinjar, four strikes destroyed three bridges and a culvert that ISIL terrorists had used.

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