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Update, August 9, 20:00 CDT
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) is a unique, non-partisan, non-profit, public policy research organization dedicated to “advance an informed understanding of military affairs through reliable research, trusted analysis, and innovative education.” It is “committed to improving the nation’s ability to execute military operations and respond to emerging threats in order to achieve U.S. strategic objectives.”
It conducts detailed, open-source intelligence analysis to provide the most accurate information on current conflicts and security threats. One of these current conflicts is of course the ISIL “conflict” in Iraq.
Below is ISW’s excellent and comprehensive August 9 Iraq Situation Report.
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Watch the president tell Americans that we may not “solve [the Iraq] problem in weeks,” that “This is going to be a long-term project.”
Video of F/A-18 Hornet strikes in Iraq, August 8:
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Update – August 9 – 0900 CDT:
Some background information on the humanitarian assistance Operation Near Sinjar, Iraq:
Tonight, the U.S. military conducted a successful airdrop of food and water for thousands of Iraqi citizens threatened by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) near Sinjar, Iraq.
This mission was conducted from multiple airbases within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility and included one C-17 and two C-130 aircraft that together dropped a total of 72 bundles of supplies.
They were escorted by two F-16s also from an airbase within Central Command; the supply mission did not require any U.S. ground forces.
The C-17 dropped 40 “Container Delivery System” bundles of fresh drinking water and was complemented by a C-130 loaded with an additional 16 bundles totaling 5,300 gallons of fresh drinking water.
In addition, one C-130 aircraft dropped 16 bundles totaling 8,000 meals ready to eat. The aircraft were over the drop area for less than fifteen minutes flying at a low altitude.
As part of the United States commitment to allies and partners in the region, the Department of Defense maintains a robust stock of food items and water for rapid distribution if needed for a natural disaster or other crisis.
The United States military will continue to work with the Department of State as well as international partners including the Government of Iraq, the United Nations, and non-government organizations to assess the need for additional humanitarian operations in Iraq going forward.
Two C-130 Hercules airlifters, similar to the one shown in this U.S. Air Force file photo, helped deliver humanitarian supplies to Yezidis, a religious minority that ISIL has vowed to eliminate, at Mount Sinjar, Iraq, Aug. 7, 2014.U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Kendra Owenby
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Friday night, the U.S. military conducted another successful airdrop of food and water for thousands of Iraqi citizens threatened by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on Mount Sinjar, Iraq.
This airdrop was conducted from multiple airbases within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility and as with last night, included one C-17 and two C-130 cargo aircraft that together dropped a total of 72 bundles of supplies. The cargo aircraft were escorted by two F/A-18s from the USS George H.W. Bush.
The C-17 dropped some 40 container delivery system bundles of meals ready to eat and was complemented by a C-130 loaded with an additional 16 bundles totaling 28,224 meals. In addition, one C-130 dropped 16 bundles totaling 1,522 gallons of fresh drinking water.
C-17 Globemasters such as this one, seen dropping a pallet over a Hawaiian drop zone, have been dropping bundles containing meals over northetrn Iraq.(U. S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Stephany Richards)
To date, in coordination with the government of Iraq, U.S. military aircraft have delivered 36,224 meals and 6,822 gallons of fresh drinking water, providing much-needed aid to Iraqis who urgently require emergency assistance.
The United States military will continue to work with the Department of State as well as international partners including the Government of Iraq, the United Nations, and non-government organizations to assess the need for additional humanitarian operations in Iraq going forward.
Straps secure water bundles aboard a C-17 Globemaster III before a humanitarian airdrop over Iraq, Aug. 8, 2014. The 816th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron aircrew airdropped 40 bundles of water for displaced citizens near Sinjar, Iraq.(Photo: DoD)
U.S. airmen palletize halal meals at a base in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, Aug. 7, 2014, for a humanitarian airdrop mission over Iraq. The humanitarian aid includes bottled water and food, which was delivered to displaced citizens near Sinjar, Iraq. The airmen are assigned to the 8th Expeditionary Air Mobility Squadron. (photo: DoD)
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Original Post:
The U.S. military continue to conduct air strikes on ISIL targets and to fly humanitarian relief missions.
Here is a summary:
The U.S. military continued to attack ISIL targets near Irbil in northern Iraq today, conducting two additional airstrikes to help defend the city where U.S. personnel are assisting the Iraqi government.
Shortly after 10 a.m. EDT, remotely piloted aircraft struck a terrorist mortar position. When ISIL fighters returned to the site moments later, the terrorists were attacked again and were killed.
At about 11:20 a.m. EDT, four F/A-18 aircraft successfully struck a stationary ISIL convoy of seven vehicles and a mortar position near Irbil.
Sailors guide an F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Valions of Strike Fighter Squadron 15 on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush, Aug. 8, 2014. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Lorelei Vander Griend
“The aircraft executed two planned passes,” Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said. “On both runs, each aircraft dropped one laser guided bomb making a total of eight bombs dropped on target, neutralizing the mortar and convoy.”
The F/A-18 Super Hornets are assigned to Carrier Air Wing 8 embarked on the USS George H. W. Bush aircraft carrier that is operating in the Arabian Gulf on a scheduled deployment to U.S. 5th Fleet.
A small vessel transits in front of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush as it transits the Strait of Hormuz (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Abe McNatt)
Carrier Air Wing 8 aircraft assigned to the Bush carrier strike group include the “Golden Warriors” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87 (F/A-18); “Valions” of VFA-15 (F/A-18); “Fighting Black Lions” of VFA-213 (F/A-18E/F); “Tomcatters” of VFA-31 (F/A-18E); “Bear Aces” of Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 124 (E-2C Hawkeye); “Garudas” of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 134 (EA-18G); “Tridents” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 9 (MH-60S); “Rawhides” of Fleet Logistics Support Squadron (VRC) 40 (C-2A); and the “Spartans” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 70 (SH-60B/MH-60R).
Kirby has explained the objectives of the Iraq operations as follows:
U.S. air operations in Iraq reflect a commitment to relieving the humanitarian issue in northern Iraq’s Kurdistan region and to protecting American personnel.
Yesterday, U.S. aircraft dropped food and water to thousands of people seeking refuge on Mount Sinjar to escape ISIL fighters.
Six 1,200-pound Improved Container Delivery System (I-CDS) bundles of water and Meals, Ready to Eat are dropped off a C-130 Hercules in a previous mission during Operation Iraqi Freedom using a new “Joint Precision Airdrop System” in combination with the I-CDS. A similar system may have been used to air drop food and water to the refugees on Mount Sinjar. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Cecilio M. Ricardo Jr.)
Kirby: “We’re committed to two things…One is trying to relieve the humanitarian issue there on Mount Sinjar, and of course being prepared and ready to conduct airstrikes to protect American personnel … in Irbil and potentially even in and around Baghdad.”
The airstrikes also will try to help Iraqi security forces, the admiral added, “as they go after the ISIL threat inside their country, to their people [and] to their sovereignty. Ultimately, this is an Iraqi fight.”
On the humanitarian emergency for the Yezidis on Mount Sinjar, the problem is one for the international community to help in solving, the admiral said. “The international community has … responded with some humanitarian assistance, the government of Iraq provided some humanitarian assistance, [and] we’re chipping in to that effort as well,” he added.
“These ISIL terrorists are simply brutes,” the admiral said. “They’re thugs. They’re murderers. They have no regard for human life or human dignity. And it’s not just Christians or the Yezidis they’re threatening.
“We do believe they pose a threat not just to Iraq, but to the region, and they do have aspirational desires to threaten western targets, to include the United States and American citizens,” he continued. “There’s no question about that. … And our focus is helping the Iraqis deal with this threat inside their country and in the broader region.”
The United States has expedited military assistance to the Iraqi government, most critically in the form of Hellfire missiles, Kirby said, adding that thousands of the missiles are on the way.
“They’ve been used with good effect and the Iraqi government continues to need those,” he said. “We’re working with the Iraqi government on that, and that does include conversations and discussions with the Kurds and the [armed Kurdish fighters known as] Peshmerga up in the north. We’re continuing to evaluate those kinds of requests.”
Sources:
Lead Image DoD
The author is a retired U.S. Air Force officer and a writer.