Military, National

U.S., Coalition Continue Strikes Against ISIS, May 1, 2017


war on terror

SOUTHWEST ASIA–(ENEWSPF)–May 1, 2017 — U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria yesterday, conducting 28 strikes consisting of 73 engagements, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

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 20 strikes consisting of 43 engagements against ISIS targets:

  • Near Dayr Az Zawr, four strikes destroyed four ISIS wellheads.
  • Near Raqqa, two strikes destroyed four ISIS barges and an ISIS weapons facility.
  • Near Tabqah, 14 strikes engaged 12 ISIS tactical units; destroyed five ISIS oil stills, two vehicles and a fighting position; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.

Strikes in Iraq

In Iraq, coalition military forces conducted eight strikes consisting of 30 engagements against ISIS targets:

  • Near Haditha, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and an ISIS sniper team.
  • Near Mosul, four strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units and two sniper teams; destroyed six fighting positions, three artillery systems, three mortar systems, two rocket-propelled-grenade systems, a front-end loader, a vehicle-bomb factory and an ISIS staging area; damaged three ISIS supply routes; and suppressed two mortar teams and two rocket teams.
  • Near Rawah, a strike destroyed an anti-air artillery system.
  • Near Sinjar, a strike destroyed four ISIS fueling points.
  • Near Tal Afar, a strike destroyed a front-end loader.

Earlier Strikes

Additionally, officials reported details today of nine April 28-29 strikes for which the information became available after yesterday’s report.

  • On April 29 near Raqqa, Syria, two strikes destroyed an ISIS-held building and an ISIS staging area.
  • On April 28-29 near Tabqah, Syria, six strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed four vehicles, two vehicle-borne bombs and three fighting positions; damaged three fighting positions; and suppressed two ISIS tactical units.
  • On April 29 near Mosul, Iraq, a strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed two fighting positions, two weapons caches, a mortar system and a front-end loader; and suppressed a heavy machine gun.

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.

Source: http://defense.gov


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