U.S. Defense Department map shows Coalition and Ground Forces in Syria and Iraq fighting Islamic State, or Daesh, fighters in the Anbar Corridor from Hadithah to Ramadi. (Courtesy: United States Central Command)
VOA: Islamic State Caliphate Crunched by US-Backed Forces
The borders of the Islamic State’s self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria are steadily eroding, but it will likely be months before U.S. and coalition-backed forces are ready to take on the terror group’s strongholds in Mosul or Raqqa.
New estimates from U.S.-led Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) show Islamic State (IS) fighters have lost 40 percent of the territory they once held in Iraq and five percent of the territory they once held in Syria.
“We’ve seen small dust-ups in both the Euphrates and Tigris River valleys but no significant tactical action,” OIR spokesman Col. Steve Warren told Pentagon reporters from Baghdad regarding IS activity in Iraq.
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WNU Editor: Progress is being made .... albeit very slowly.