{"id":24299,"date":"2019-01-14T22:19:55","date_gmt":"2019-01-14T22:19:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/01\/14\/airstrikes-up-against-isis-taliban\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:38:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:38:16","slug":"airstrikes-up-against-isis-taliban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/your-air-force\/2019\/01\/14\/airstrikes-up-against-isis-taliban\/","title":{"rendered":"Airstrikes up against ISIS, Taliban"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Air Force, other U.S. aircraft and allies dropped more bombs on Islamic State targets<\/a> in Syria and Iraq in November than in any month for the past year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the number of weapons released in Afghanistan<\/a> has already hit its highest point in years, according to new statistics released by U.S. Air Forces Central Command<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the November 2018 summary posted online Friday, AFCENT said that 1,424 weapons were released that month as part of Operation Inherent Resolve<\/a>, the campaign against ISIS. That\u2019s far more than the previous 2018 record set in October, when 876 weapons were released. And its the most since October 2017, when 1,642 weapons were released.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overall, however, 2018 was on track to end with by far the lowest number of bombs dropped of any year since the anti-ISIS campaign began. This reflects how the war against the militant group in Iraq and Syria has ebbed since its peak in 2016 and 2017, when the coalition waged furious bombing campaigns to drive ISIS out of cities such as Mosul, Iraq, and Raqqa, Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By the end of November, the coalition had released 6,499 weapons in 2018 against ISIS. That\u2019s down from the 39,577 bombs dropped in 2017, and 30,743 weapons released in 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The November increase in weapons released occurred before President Trump began ordering troops to be withdrawn from Syria, and before former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis resigned in protest in December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AFCENT\u2019s airpower summary did not include a written portion providing more detail on the month\u2019s activities and changes. The last monthly summary that included such details was in August 2018.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AFCENT has not yet responded to questions from Air Force Times about November\u2019s airpower statistics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The coalition also released 841 weapons in Afghanistan in November \u2014 the same as in September, and the highest of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\t