Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren provided the latest coalition reports from the Middle East on the war against ISIL, including a critique of Russia's airstrikes in Syria.
Warren said that compared with the precision of the coalition attacks on the Omar Gas and Oil Separation plant in Dayr ez Zawr, Russia's airstrikes on the same plant were clumsy attacks coupled with Syrian attacks that are causing trouble for humanitarian efforts to help civilians in the area, specifically in Aleppo.
Warren said a U.N. report has accused Syrian government forces of "inhumane actions" against Syrian civilians on such a wide scale that the report characterized it as "extermination."
With Aleppo's two major hospitals demolished by both Russian and Syrian attacks, it is becoming more and more difficult to provide assistance to the nearly 50,000 Syrians who are not able to reach life-saving help, Warren said.
Whereas Russia originally said it was entering the fray to fight the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), its actions so far seem only to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's position, Warren said.
“ISIL is virtually nonexistent in that part of Syria,” Warren said. “Russia can no longer credibly claim its airstrikes there are doing anything other than supporting regime forces." Warren said there is no viable future for Syria if the current president stays in power.
As for progress in Iraq, the City of Ramadi is in the process of being cleared, but Warren said attacks by ISIL forces continue and that “untold thousands of (improvised explosive devices)" still all over the city. Though progress continues, Iraqi opposition forces still control Fallujah and areas between Beiji and Tikrit, while they also hold their ground in Sinjar, though Warren said there have been multiple airstrikes from the coalition in the past week in Sinjar and 19 in Mosul.
"The Islamic State has not gained a single inch of territory in Iraq in months,” Warren said.
In addition, Canada recently moved to increase its forces in the fight against ISIL. This week, Canada declared that it will begin to triple its efforts, increasing its military presence by 830 personnel. "They will deploy troops at various headquarters to further support planning, targeting and intelligence," Warren said in a videoconference interview. "As part of these efforts, Canada will deploy medical personnel to train Iraqi medics and to provide medical support to coalition members.”
Canada also will deliver various arms to the region and help train security forces in and around Iraq. Canada has been a crucial cog in the coalition machine against ISIL, with services such as refueling aircraft and surveillance, and Warren was happy to announce the nation's continued support and renewed efforts to defeat ISIL.
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