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The Afghan government announced the death of former Taliban leader Mullah Omar on July 29, 2015, and the Taliban confirmed the report the subsequent day. Widespread knowledge of Mullah Omar’s death will exacerbate existing fractures within the Taliban and accelerate a power grab among several prominent individuals who have fundamental disagreements over the objectives of the movement.
ISIS launched a large complex attack against ISF and Iraqi Shi’a militia positions in Baiji district on August 14, recapturing several parts of the city in an offensive that involved between 7-10 VBIEDs, direct and indirect fire, and up to 200 gunmen.
Prime Minister (PM) Haidar al-Abadi is pushing ahead with his political reform initiative following the unanimous passing of his reform bill on August 11 by the Council of Representatives (CoR).
ISW has updated its ISIS Sanctuary map. This map, covering both Iraq and Syria, shows the extent of ISIS zones of control, attack, and support throughout both countries.
Since the publication of ISW's last ISIS Sanctuary Map on June 19, 2015, ISIS has escalated attacks to fix opponents in order to protect its core terrain in Iraq and Syria. ISIS launched a failed offensive on Hasaka City to divert Syrian Kurdish forces after the Kurds seized terrain north of ISIS's stronghold of Raqqa. ISIS also escalated attacks against Syrian rebels north of Aleppo, likely in order to disrupt potential efforts by Turkey to establish an "ISIS-free" zone in the area.
On August 10, Russian-backed separatist forces launched their largest combined arms assault against Ukrainian forces in the past two months.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s landmark August 7 sermon has provided PM Abadi with a mandate to embark on administrative, financial, and anti-corruption reforms.