Aircraft Hit ISIL Targets in Syria

Manned and unmanned combat aircraft and Tomahawk cruise missiles hit ISIL targets in Syria during a Sept. 23 overnight attack, the Pentagon announced. According to U.S. Central Command, the initial attacks targeted enemy personnel, training and storage areas, command and control, finance and headquarters facilities, and trucks and vehicles. The cruise missiles were launched from the destroyer Arleigh Burke and cruiser Philippine Sea, operating in the Red Sea and north Arabian Gulf. Manned Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps fighter planes took part as well. The mission was conducted with military support from Bahrain, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, according to the Pentagon. “The strength of this coalition makes it clear to the world that this is not America’s fight alone. Above all, the people and governments of the Middle East are rejecting ISIL and standing up for the peace and security that the people of the region and the world deserve,” President Obama said in a White House address following the airstrikes.