africom

WASHINGTON, Aug. 4, 2016 — U.S. Africa Command officials today announced results of the recent precision airstrikes conducted against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant targets in Sirte, Libya.

Africom is conducting the strikes at the request of, and in coordination with, the Libyan Government of National Accord, officials said.

Airstrikes Aug. 1-3

On Aug. 1, airstrikes hit a T-72 tank, two military support vehicles, an enemy fighting position, a T-55 tank and two pieces of heavy engineering equipment

Airstrikes on Aug. 2 hit a rocket launcher, an excavator and a pickup truck with a mounted recoilless rifle.

Yesterday, Africom struck a pickup truck with a mounted recoilless rifle.

These airstrikes bring the total number of airstrikes in support of Operation Odyssey Lightning to nine over the first three days of August, Africom officials said. “The U.S. stands with the international community in supporting the GNA as it strives to restore stability and security to Libya,” they added in a news release announcing the results of the airstrikes.

These and previous actions will help to deny ISIL a safe haven in Libya from which it could attack the United States and its allies, officials said in the release.