Another aspect of the war of attrition waged against ISIL

Washington Post:
‘Terrain denial strikes’ are part of strategy to fight Islamic State in Iraq

In recent weeks, the number of advisers from the U.S.-led coalition assisting Iraqis has increased, and airstrikes used to disrupt deadly car bombs have intensified.
Similar strikes were used in Vietnam in an attempt to herd the enemy away from more favorable terrain for their attacks.  The B-52 did it with arclight strikes that lit up the night sky and caused the earth to tremble.  Artillery strikes would use harassing and interdiction fires.  These too were usually done at night when the enemy liked to move to contact.

In Iraq, it should be easier to spot the enemy when he tries to move to contact.  There is little vegetation to act as cover for the movement.  I suspect that workshops, where vehicle-borne bombs are built, are also targeted.

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