"We have managed, thanks to the great work our folks are doing out there, to target and capture and detain some of his closest associates" per @brett_mcgurk on ISIS leader Baghdadi "If he's still with us, I don't think it will be for too much longer"
ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, "He is in deep, deep hiding at best" per @StateDept's @brett_mcgurk "There have been times we thought he was no longer around and he would issue an audio tape, so it's hard to say" if he's alive "Know for sure, he was in very very deep hiding"
"Ballpark we're talking a period of months" to defeat ISIS in Hajin stronghold, per @brett_mcgurk
"I just try to stay away from numbers" @StateDept's @brett_mcgurk says when asked about how ISIS fighters are left "The numbers have been all over the place.It's not numbers. It's capabilities," which he says are "significantly degraded"
"Areas we have cleared of ISIS, they have not returned to claim physical space" per @brett_mcgurk "There are clandestine cells. No one is saying they are going to disappear. Nobody is that naive"
"The military objective is the enduring defeat of ISIS" per @brett_mcgurk "And if we've learned one thing over the years, the enduring defeat of a group like ISIS means you can't just defeat their physical space and then leave"
"We got it to a point where almost every ISIS fighter is wearing a suicide bomb, a suicide vest, the extent of IED emplacements, it's very very difficult fighting, so it's taking some time" per @brett_mcgurk Adds almost 1400 civilians have fled Hajin in last week or so
"We're at a point in the campaign where we're really looking ahead to make sure we can endure, sustain all these gains" per @brett_mcgurk "The big focus of that is stabilization.this will really take a period of years" Notes 4 million Iraq is have returned to their homes
Blast hits Khanaqin, northern Diyala province. 2 policemen killed and 4 wounded.
4 month agoThere was a phone call today between @VP and the prime minister of Iraq.
Iraq federal police out of Kirkuk conducting "large scale clearance" ops in Hawijah area "targeting ISIS fighters and senior leaders hiding in the mountainous terrain", per Col Byrom
4 month agoIraqi, French and U.S. 3d Cavalry Regiment artillery units on Firebase Saham conducted strikes to stop ISIS fleeing Syria into Iraq.
4 month agoIraqi artillery units worked side-by-side with 3d Cavalry Regiment Troopers to conduct fire missions against ISIS.
Iraq's air force announced their fighter jets destroyed two ISIS targets in Syria, where a total of 44 militants were present
Iraqi PM @AdilAbdAlMahdi hosts @SecretaryPerry in Baghdad to discuss closer business ties with the United States
4 month agoIraqi federal police said they have found a secret tunnel used by ISIS militants in Kirkuk province containg weapons and explosives.
Iraqi army forces killed two suspected ISIS militants while attempting to plant roadside bombs in Badosh area west of Mosul late on Monday.
Germany provides additional 22 million for post-ISIS stabilization in Iraq
Member of Baghdad Council says US warning against travel to Iraq is in response to the opening of Baghdad's Green Zone, which exposes US Embassy to possible attack.
Former Iraq PM Abadi on @AlHadath: Most of the intelligence we received on ISIS, especially in Mosul, came from civilians.
Two members of the Iraqi Tribal Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Ashairi) were killed in a roadside bomb explosion on Monday southeast of Mosul.
4 month agoU.S. Central Command:U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons pull away after being refueled by a 28th Expeditionary Aerial Refueling Squadron KC-135 Stratotanker in support of @CJTFOIR, Nov. 29.
4 month agoLocal authorities have begun the reconstruction of the main bridge between Kalar - Darbandikhan in the Kurdistan Region after it was damaged by recent floods caused by heavy rainfall.
Five Islamic State militants were arrested Sunday in Nineveh province, the Iraqi Security Media Center said as the Iraqi forces still launch manhunts nationwide for remnants of the extremist group.
Iraqi Oil Minister: OPEC agreed to reduce production by 0.8 million barrels per day
In ambush, Iraqi Security Forces kill a terrorist and injure 3 others in Hamriin mountains in Salah ad-Din Province.
Iraqi Military Intelligence arrests supplier of weapons to ISIS cells in East Mosul.
4 month agoA senior member of al-Sadr Movement and Saraya al-Salam militia group, affiliated to Muqtada al-Sadr killed by unknown armed militia in Baghdad's al-Shua'la neighborhood today.
Iraqi Forces just killed a Suicide Bomber on Hamrin Range.
Turkish Armed Forces killed 8 suspected militants in strike in Northern Iraq
