Iraq

The attack by an alleged ISIS supporter at a Lindt chocolate shop in Syndey, Australia on December 15, 2014 has raised fears of the international spread of ISIS. The incident, which resulted in critical injuries to four hostages and the deaths of two, bore no signs of formal connection to ISIS.

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) appears to be taking steps to forcibly recruit members to its ranks.

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) is continuing an aggressive posture in Anbar province in western Iraq.

The Islamic State in Iraq and Sham (ISIS) is challenging the ISF and militias following a lull in offensive activity observed after multiple recent successes of ISF, militias, and the Peshmerga against ISIS.

There is an ongoing and intensified push by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) in areas north of Baghdad and near Samarra.

The Iraqi Government of Prime Minister (PM) Haidar al-Abadi is taking measures to control an increasingly lawless situation in the capital caused by the wide freedom of
movement enjoyed by Iraqi Shi'a militias and criminal networks.

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) continues to concentrate its effort in the area of Balad in the northern Baghdad belt.

There are currently three ongoing fronts of engagements between the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and forces countering it.

Col. Harry G. Summers Jr. begins his book, On Strategy: The Vietnam War in Context, by relaying the following conversation: “‘You know you never defeated us on the battlefield,’ said the American colonel. The North Vietnamese colonel pondered this remark a moment. ‘That may be so,’ he replied, ‘but it is also irrelevant.’” As much as we may not want to admit it, in this sense, our current war against al Qaeda and their ilk resembles that of Vietnam. In fighting our post- 9/11 wars, we have won nearly every battle but are far from winning the war. How can this be? The answer lies largely in the civil military nexus that underpins how America wages war.