Military Strikes Hit ISIS Terrorists in Syria, Iraq

SOUTHWEST ASIA, Feb. 23, 2018 — U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria between Feb. 16 and yesterday, conducting 41 strikes consisting of 76 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

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

Strikes in Syria

-- On Feb. 22 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted four strikes, destroying a fighting position and damaging two ISIL supply routes.

-- On Feb. 21 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted three strikes, destroying two mortar staging facilities and a weapons cache.

-- On Feb. 20 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted five strikes, destroying three staging facilities, a mortar system and two motorcycles.

-- On Feb. 19 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes, destroying an ISIL observation post, a weapons cache and an ISIL resupply vehicle and damaging a bulldozer and a mortar.

-- On Feb. 18 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted four strikes, destroying a fighting position, a weapons cache and an ISIL headquarters. Two ISIL supply routes were damaged.

-- On Feb. 17 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted nine strikes, destroying an ISIL supply route, four fighting positions and three ISIL vehicles. Four ISIL supply routes, a tactical vehicle and an unmanned aerial vehicle were damaged.

-- On Feb. 16 near Abu Kamal, coalition military forces conducted seven strikes, damaging an ISIL supply route.

Strikes in Iraq

-- There were no reported strikes conducted in Iraq on Feb. 22, 2018.

-- On Feb. 21 near Lake Hamrin, coalition military forces conducted a strike, destroying an ISIL vehicle, a tractor, a bunker, a motorcycle and an ISIL-held building.

-- There were no reported strikes conducted in Iraq on Feb. 20, 2018.

-- On Feb. 19 near Kirkuk, coalition military forces conducted a strike, destroying an ISIL tunnel entrance.

-- There were no reported strikes conducted in Iraq on Feb. 16, 17 and18, 2018.

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.