WASHINGTON –
Coalition forces and their
partners on the ground are making sustained progress in the fight in Iraq and
Syria against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, the Operation Inherent
Resolve spokesman said today.
Army Col. Steve Warren briefed Pentagon reporters via video
teleconference from Baghdad.
Recent coalition strikes on bridges about 50 miles south of
Mosul have limited ISIL's ability to maneuver and sustain its fighters east of
the Tigris River, Warren said.
In Mosul, the coalition struck at an ISIL headquarters and
weapons manufacturing facility March 19, he said.
In the Euphrates River Valley, coalition efforts continue to
pressure ISIL, the colonel said. Iraqi forces are securing the western
approaches to Hit and are making steady progress, Warren said.
"One airstrike of interest occurred on March 17 against
an ISIL headquarters and weapons storage facility in Hit," he said, adding
that the strike destroyed the headquarters building and nine weapons storage
facilities.
Warren said that in the last 10 days, the Iraq Counter
Terrorism Service and local forces have cleared more than 25 miles of the
Euphrates River Valley, liberating several small villages along the way.
Making Preparations
He said Iraq’s 73rd Brigade and the counter terrorism
service are making preparations now for the final advance on Hit.
Those efforts, the colonel said, include clearing operations
in a wider effort to eliminate ISIL fighters, deny access to resources and cut
off the terrorists' lines of communication in preparation for the liberation of
Mosul.
Warren noted that Iraqi forces northeast of Ramadi cleared
572 improvised explosive devices, opening a six-mile long stretch of road.
"This is good progress," he said.
In Syria, Syrian Democratic Forces continue to pressure the
enemy in Shaddadi and along the Mara line, Warren told reporters. Operation
Tidal Wave II -- targeted strikes on ISIL oil production and distribution --
has struck 117 targets to date, including eight in March, the colonel said.
"Tidal Wave II has debilitated ISIL oil infrastructure,
and it has hamstrung their ability to fund terror operations," Warren
said.