Marines Come Under Attack in Iraq;Latest Airstrikes;Training Iraqi Troops

It is fair to say the al-Asad command has come under regular fire,but the fire has been completely ineffective,said Pentagon spokesman COL Steven Warren,US Army.These are purely nuisance attacks.Some 320 Marines are at the al-Asad Air Base in Western Anbar,where they have been training,advising and assisting the Iraqi 7th Division since 20 December.No Marines or their equipment have been hit by the incoming ISIL fire,and the Marines have not returned fire.Mostly they have been mortar attacks,but with some rockets as well.The Iraqi forces have done a very good job of creating a security zone,COL Warren noted.The Marines,members of a Marine Air Ground Task Force(MAGTF)under US Central Command,are among about 2100 US troops currently in Iraq.Around 800 of these are security and force protection troops;the others are on the train,advise and assist mission of Operation Inherent Resolve,the anti-ISIL militant effort.These 1300 are getting the Iraqi and Kurdsh Peshmerga forces ready to go on the offensive against ISIL and reclaim lost territory.Up to 1300 more US troops are on the way later this month,for a total of up to 3400 US troops in Iraq.*
In coalition airstrikes taking place in Iraq and Syria from 5-6 January,the Pentagon reports that 13 ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL building were destroyed near Kobani,Syria;while in Iraq,a strike destroyed an ISIL tactical unit,an ISIL armoured vehicle and another ISIL vehicle near Asad.Nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the US,Australia,Belgium,Canada,Denmark,France,the Netherlands and the UK.Those conducting airstrikes in Syria include the US,Bahrain,Jordan,Saudi Arabia and the UAE.*
Besides al-Asad Air Base,another training camp for Iraqi troops has been opened at Taji north of Baghdad,to be followed by a third camp at Besmaya southeast of Baghdad;Kurdish Peshmerga fighters will be trained at a fourth camp in Irbil in the north.