Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is on the brink of losing the two main centres of his ‘caliphate’ but even though he is on the run, it may take years to capture or kill him, officials and experts said. Islamic State fighters are close to defeat in the twin capitals of the group’s territory, […]
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An audio message purporting to come from the spokesman of Islamic State called on followers to launch attacks in the United States, Europe, Russia, Australia, Iraq, Syria, Iran, and the Philippines during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which began in late May. The audio clip was distributed on Monday on Islamic State’s channel on […]
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Iraqi forces are facing fierce resistance from Islamic State militants in southern Mosul on their second day of a renewed push to take back the city after fighting stalled for several weeks. Nathan Frandino reports. Firing from the sky and on the ground, Iraqi forces engage Islamic State fighters during the second day of a […]
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The U.S. military believes that some 50,000 Islamic State fighters have been killed since the United States started battling the group more than two years ago, a senior U.S. military official said on Thursday, calling it a “conservative estimate.” The official, who spoke to Pentagon reporters on condition of anonymity, said the figure showed how […]
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No food or fuel has reached Mosul in nearly a week and the onset of rain and cold weather threatens a tough winter for more than a million people still in Islamic State-held areas of the city, residents said on Saturday. Iraqi troops waging a six-week-old offensive against the militants controlling Mosul have advanced into […]
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Video posted online on Saturday (November 19) by the Islamic State-affiliated Amaq News Agency appears to show clashes between IS fighters and Iraqi forces near Mosul in Iraq. The first clip purports to show Islamic State fighters firing heavy machineguns at unspecified targets on the outskirts of Aden, east of Mosul. The footage also appears […]
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This video posted on social media purports to show rebel fighters in the village of Dabiq, Syria. Rebels — as well as Turkey, which backs them — said they fully captured the village from Islamic State on Sunday. Their victory forced the jihadists from their symbolic stronghold where they had promised to fight a final, […]
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Iraq’s Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Monday announced the start of an offensive to retake Mosul, the capital of Islamic State’s so-called caliphate in Iraq. “I announce today the start of the heroic operations to free you from the terror and the oppression of Daesh,” he said in a speech on state TV, using an […]
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Anjem Choudary, Britain’s most high-profile Islamist preacher whose followers have been linked to numerous militant plots across the world, has been found guilty of inviting support for Islamic State. Choudary, 49, was convicted at London’s Old Bailey court of using online lectures and messages to encourage support for the banned group which controls large parts […]
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As Iraqi forces prepare to attack Islamic State in its de facto capital of Mosul, residents inside the city and others who have managed to escape expressed relief at the prospect their home could be liberated from the extremist group’s harsh rule. But they also warned that if the assault is successful, the city’s Sunni-majority […]
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