Officials Release Details of Latest Strikes Against ISIS Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Sept. 11, 2017 — U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria on Sept. 9-10, conducting 78 strikes consisting of 91 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.

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 38 strikes consisting of 42 engagements against ISIS targets on Sept. 9:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed an ISIS headquarters.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, three strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two fighting positions and a vehicle.

-- Near Raqqa, 34 strikes engaged eight ISIS tactical units; destroyed 21 fighting positions, 16 vehicles, four heavy machine guns, two command-and-control nodes, a logistics node and engineering equipment; and suppressed six fighting positions.

Yesterday, coalition military forces conducted 26 strikes consisting of 28 engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Abu Kamal, a strike destroyed a vehicle-borne-bomb factory.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed an ISIS unmanned aerial system, a vehicle-borne-bomb facility, a vehicle-borne bomb, a vehicle and a tactical vehicle.

-- Near Raqqa, 23 strikes engaged eight ISIS tactical units; destroyed 20 fighting positions, two logistics nodes and a vehicle; and suppressed two fighting positions.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes consisting of 15 engagements against ISIS targets on Sept. 9:

-- Near Huwayjah, three strikes engaged two ISIS tactical units and destroyed two command-and-control nodes, two weapons caches, a vehicle, an ISIS headquarters and an ISIS-held building.

-- Near Qaim, a strike destroyed an ISIS staging area.

-- Near Rawah, five strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed seven command and control nodes, a vehicle-borne bomb, an ISIS-held building and a vehicle.

Yesterday, coalition military forces conducted five strikes consisting of six engagements against ISIS targets:

-- Near Huwayjah, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed two vehicles.

-- Near Qaim, a strike destroyed an explosives factory.

-- Near Rawah, a strike destroyed two command-and-control nodes.

-- Near Rutbah, two strikes destroyed an ISIS training camp and a vehicle-borne-bomb facility.

Previous Strikes

Additionally, 20 strikes consisting of 32 engagements were conducted near Raqqa, Syria, on Sept. 8 that closed within the last 24 hours. The strikes engaged 11 ISIS tactical units; destroyed 15 vehicles, six logistics nodes, four fighting positions and an improvised explosive device; and suppressed three fighting positions.

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.