Attacks on what the military refers to as “dynamic targets” have increased since early fall, according to data obtained by USA TODAY. These targets are often groups of fighters from the Islamic State, also known as ISIL, who have been forced into the open desert by allied ground forces. Also, in November pilots from the U.S.-led coalition launched a campaign to destroy tankers smuggling oil, a key revenue source for ISIL. Airstrikes have destroyed about 400 tankers.
Advances on the ground by U.S.-supported opposition fighters, known as Syrian Democratic Forces, in northern Syria have forced ISIL militants to move to confront the threat, said Nicholas Heras, an expert on Syria and ISIL at the Center for a New American Security. Previously, ISIL’s elite foreign troops from other Arab countries and the Caucasus, had been hunkered down amid civilians in Syrian cities, essentially shielded from airstrikes because of the coalition’s directive avoid civilian casualties.
“When they move now, the coalition has a better sense where they will be moving to and by what routes and stopping points along the way, and it makes eastern Syria a far more target-rich environment,” Heras said.
The peak in attacking dynamic targets occurred from Nov. 10 to 23 when pilots hit 339 fleeting targets compared with 57 that had been planned before they launched their raids, the figures show. The mounting intensity of the fight comes as President Obama prepares to visit the Pentagon Monday with his national security team for an update on progress on ISIL.
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