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Iraq declares victory in war against IS
The announcement comes three years after the terrorist group overran and seized large swathes of the country and declared a new caliphate
The announcement comes three years after the terrorist overran and seized large swathes of the country, declaring a new caliphate in Iraq and Syria
Iraq has declared that the war against the Islamic State has ended after three years of combat, with security forces having driven the last remaining fighters from the territories once held by the group.
The announcement was made by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi a conference in Baghdad. He said that Iraqi forces were not in full control of the country’s border with Syria, with his spokesman adding that the development market the end of fight against the jihadi group.
The jihadi group overran nearly a third of Iraqi territory, including Mosul, the country’s second-largest city, in the summer of 2014. ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi called it a new Islamic caliphate.
Whether or not IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is still not confirmed.
The Islamic extremists started losing territory after Iraqi ground forces, backed by a U.S.-led coalition airstrikes, fought to retake its territory.
In the most significant victory over the extremists, Iraqi forces retook Mosul earlier this year. Al-Abadi declared the fight concluded in July, but clashes continued in the city for weeks afterward.
In November, Iraqi forces retook Rawah, one of the last cities held by IS, with Iraqi forces continuing to clear patches of the country’s vast western deserts since.
