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The recent capture of Tikrit with U.S. air support and the absence of Iraqi Shi'a militias has undermined Iranian-backed Iraqi Shi’a militias’ reputation as indispensable allies to the ISF and the government.
Pro-Russian forces may be positioning themselves to launch surprise offensive maneuvers. An indication from international monitors that Ukrainian forces no longer occupy the southern village of Shyrokyne suggests that the Russian-backed separatists have made gains in the Mariupol area despite the ceasefire.
The ISF and allied forces have reached and cleared the areas of Tikrit where ISIS was believed to be the most thoroughly entrenched.
JN and Rebel Forces Seize Provincial Capital in Idlib, Militia Headquarters in Dera’a: JN and rebel forces made two crucial gains against regime forces that threaten the continued viability of the regime’s Syria-wide war effort in 2015.
Rebel forces participating in the “Jaysh al-Fatah Operations Room” led by al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra (JN) seized the city of Idlib on March 28, 2015, following a four day offensive.
The contest for Tikrit is escalating. The ground offensive to retake the city has resumed following U.S. airstrikes, although without the Iranian-backed militias that withdrew in opposition to coalition involvement.
Iranian-backed militias have exhibited mixed reactions to the participation of the U.S.-led coalition in the Tikrit operation.
Against the backdrop of continued fighting outside Mariupol and Donetsk, Ukrainian oligarch and volunteer battalion financier Ihor Kolomoyskyi stole the headlines this week.
