Islamic State militants have been steadily battering Iraqi government forces. Well-armed and resourceful, ISIL’s bombs are found buried in villages, and roadside explosive traps are common. Yet ISIL’s latest victories have further reconfirmed that their support extends beyond the battlefield.
After Islamic State fighters captured Ramadi, in central Iraq, about 110 kilometres west of Baghdad, video coming out purports to show celebrations in Mosul.
The scale of the militants’ control and spread in parts of Syria and Iraq is significant. ISIL forces have overrun a series of towns and cities and they are consolidating. The Iraqi government is understood to control only pockets of territory.
The IS advance has exposed dire shortcomings in Iraq’s army and the limited value of US-led coalition air strikes. Despite claims that an ISIL leader was recently killed in Syria, President Obama was at a loss to explain the fall of Palmyra.
However, Washington continues to insist that its st
