2015年1月22日 星期四

U.S. officials say 6,000 ISIS fighters killed in battles




http://edition.cnn.com/2015/01/22/politics/us-officials-say-6000-isis-fighters-killed-in-battles/index.html


U.S. officials say 6,000 ISIS fighters killed in battles

By Barbara Starr, CNN Pentagon Correspondent
Updated 2241 GMT (0641 HKT) January 22, 2015
The U.S. military has also used Apache helicopters, like the one pictured here, against ISIS targets in Iraq.
Show Caption
6 of 11
F/A-18 jets and other aircraft used in strikes against ISIS have been launched from Navy carriers, including the the USS George H.W. Bush, a 103,600-ton aircraft carrier seen here in April as it transits the Strait of Hormuz.
Show Caption
7 of 11
EA-6B Prowlers are among the U.S. aircraft that took off from the USS George H.W. Bush during attacks on ISIS. The Prowler is used to support attack aircraft by jamming enemy radar and communications and obtaining tactical intelligence. Here, a Prowler -- seen at bottom -- flies in formation with an E-2C Hawkeye in June 2004.
Show Caption
8 of 11
The guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea, operating in international waters in the North Arabian Gulf, launched Tomahawk cruise missiles used against ISIS targets in Syria in some of the initial strikes on ISIS. The ship has a displacement of 9,589 tons and carries a crew of 370.
Show Caption
9 of 11
On September 22, 2014, the United States fired 47 Tomahawk missiles against targets in Syria. Tomahawks are long-range subsonic cruise missiles used to take out high-value or heavily defended land targets. They were first used in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Here, the U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Barry (DDG 52) launches a Tomahawk cruise missile in 2011.
Show Caption
10 of 11
The guided-missile destroyer USS Arleigh Burke, operating in the Red Sea, launched Tomahawk cruise missiles against ISIS targets in the first of three waves of attacks that began on September 22. The ship has a displacement of 8,373 tons and carries a crew of 370. It is part of the U.S. 5th Fleet.
Show Caption
11 of 11
The workhorses of the American fighter fleet, F-16s, have been used in dozens of strikes against ISIS. F-16s can travel 1,500 mph, or Mach 2, at altitude. Click through to see other U.S. military assets used against ISIS.
Show Caption
1 of 11
A F-15E Strike Eagle from the 391st Fighter Squadron takes off in July during a mission at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii. The F-15E Strike Eagle can carry more than 23,000 pounds of payload for air-to-ground and air-to-air combat. The plane has been in the Air Force inventory for three decades and is expected to be operational until at least 2035.
Show Caption
2 of 11
The A-10 Thunderbolt II, also known as the Warthog, joined the fight against ISIS in late 2014. The jets are specially designed for close air support of ground forces.
Show Caption
3 of 11
U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptors saw their first combat during strikes on ISIS targets in Syria, the Pentagon said. The single-seat, twin-engine stealth fighter has a top speed of almost 1,500 mph. Here, a Raptor performs during the Australian International Airshow in March 2013.
Show Caption
4 of 11
The Air Force's B-1B Lancer bomber was introduced in the 1980s to carry out nuclear missions. The plane was adapted for conventional weapons missions in the 1990s and has flown in combat over Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan. Here a B-1B flies above Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn in February 2011.
Show Caption
5 of 11
The U.S. military has also used Apache helicopters, like the one pictured here, against ISIS targets in Iraq.
Show Caption
6 of 11
F/A-18 jets and other aircraft used in strikes against ISIS have been launched from Navy carriers, including the the USS George H.W. Bush, a 103,600-ton aircraft carrier seen here in April as it transits the Strait of Hormuz.
Show Caption
7 of 11
EA-6B Prowlers are among the U.S. aircraft that took off from the USS George H.W. Bush during attacks on ISIS. The Prowler is used to support attack aircraft by jamming enemy radar and communications and obtaining tactical intelligence. Here, a Prowler -- seen at bottom -- flies in formation with an E-2C Hawkeye in June 2004.
Show Caption
8 of 11
The guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea, operating in international waters in the North Arabian Gulf, launched Tomahawk cruise missiles used against ISIS targets in Syria in some of the initial strikes on ISIS. The ship has a displacement of 9,589 tons and carries a crew of 370.
Show Caption
9 of 11
On September 22, 2014, the United States fired 47 Tomahawk missiles against targets in Syria. Tomahawks are long-range subsonic cruise missiles used to take out high-value or heavily defended land targets. They were first used in Operation Desert Storm in 1991. Here, the U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Barry (DDG 52) launches a Tomahawk cruise missile in 2011.
Show Caption
10 of 11
The guided-missile destroyer USS Arleigh Burke, operating in the Red Sea, launched Tomahawk cruise missiles against ISIS targets in the first of three waves of attacks that began on September 22. The ship has a displacement of 8,373 tons and carries a crew of 370. It is part of the U.S. 5th Fleet.
Show Caption
11 of 11
The workhorses of the American fighter fleet, F-16s, have been used in dozens of strikes against ISIS. F-16s can travel 1,500 mph, or Mach 2, at altitude. Click through to see other U.S. military assets used against ISIS.
Show Caption
1 of 11
A F-15E Strike Eagle from the 391st Fighter Squadron takes off in July during a mission at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii. The F-15E Strike Eagle can carry more than 23,000 pounds of payload for air-to-ground and air-to-air combat. The plane has been in the Air Force inventory for three decades and is expected to be operational until at least 2035.
Show Caption
2 of 11
The A-10 Thunderbolt II, also known as the Warthog, joined the fight against ISIS in late 2014. The jets are specially designed for close air support of ground forces.
Show Caption
3 of 11
U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptors saw their first combat during strikes on ISIS targets in Syria, the Pentagon said. The single-seat, twin-engine stealth fighter has a top speed of almost 1,500 mph. Here, a Raptor performs during the Australian International Airshow in March 2013.
Show Caption
4 of 11
The Air Force's B-1B Lancer bomber was introduced in the 1980s to carry out nuclear missions. The plane was adapted for conventional weapons missions in the 1990s and has flown in combat over Iraq, Kosovo and Afghanistan. Here a B-1B flies above Iraq in support of Operation New Dawn in February 2011.
Show Caption
5 of 11
The U.S. military has also used Apache helicopters, like the one pictured here, against ISIS targets in Iraq.
Show Caption
6 of 11
f-16 falcon FILE
f-15e strike eagle FILE
a-10 warthog jet
06 FILE military assets 0923
b-1b lancer FILE
08 flyovers 0131
01 FILE military assets 0923
05 FILE military assets 0923
02 FILE military assets 0923
07 FILE military assets 0923
09 FILE military assets 0923
Washington (CNN)The coalition fighting ISIS has killed more than 6,000 fighters, including half of the top command of the terror group, U.S. diplomatic officials said Thursday.
tsr dnt sciutto isis strategy_00013310
U.S. officials: We're retaking Mosul next 02:05
PLAY VIDEO
The number of fighters killed has not been publicly discussed before but was disclosed by the U.S. ambassador to Iraq Stuart Jones, who told Al Arabiya television earlier in the day that an estimated 6,000 fighters have been killed. Jones said the military effort was having a "devastating" impact on ISIS.
The estimate was calculated by U.S. Central Command and finds ISIS fighters have been killed in Iraq and Syria by coalition airstrikes, according to a U.S. military official. CENTCOM has kept a running estimate of fighters killed, but has not made it public.
U.S. intelligence estimates that ISIS has a total force of somewhere between 9,000 to 18,000 fighters. However, it is also believed the group can draw on thousands of other fighters whose loyalty shifts and could muster a force upwards of 31,000 total.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, would not confirm the 6,000 deaths estimate, instead saying "thousands" have been killed.
    On whether the body count is a sign of progress, Hagel said, "It's a measure but I don't think it's the measure."
    "I was in a war where we did body counts and we lost that one," Hagel said, referring to his service in Vietnam.
    Until now, the Pentagon has stayed away discussing the matter, other than to estimate that thousands of fighters may have been killed. Speaking to reporters Thursday, Rear Admiral John Kirby was adamant that the US is not keeping a "body count," and said it would be wrong to state that there is such a count. He called it a 'tally" and said the notion of a body count suggests Vietnam War era statistics. In that war the Pentagon offered body counts as a measure of its success against the Viet Cong. Kirby said the tally was not aimed at showing any metric of success against ISIS.
    All of this comes after Iraq has criticized the U.S. for not doing enough to help their fight against ISIS. The U.S. has long said airstrikes are aimed at degrading ISIS as a threat, but would not by themselves get rid of the organization.
    Secretary of State Kerry, speaking to reporters in London, echoed the U.S. ambassador in saying the strikes have "halted" ISIS momentum, and reclaimed "more than 700 square kilometers" from ISIS in Iraq.
    In Iraq, airstrikes around Mosul have been stepped up significantly in support of Peshmerga fighters on the advance in the region. The effort now is to cut a key ISIS supply line into Mosul, a US military official said.
    The official stressed the US cannot confirm the exact number but has based its calculation based on pilot reports, and other intelligence gathered about a target before and after a strike.





    張貼者： 於
    標籤： ,

    沒有留言:

    張貼留言

    訂閱： 張貼留言 (Atom)