Daesh, which had proclaimed a so-called Caliphate in 2014 after the capture of Iraq’s Mosul, saw its fortunes dwindle in 2017. Starting 2014, the militant group achieved dominance across almost every province in Syria and across central and northern Iraq. In 2017, the losses suffered by the militant group accelerated and it lost large chunks of territory to Syrian and Iraqi government forces. By October, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) had captured Daesh’s de-facto capital of Raqqa. Without holding any significant urban terrain, the militant organisation’s so-called caliphate came to an end in 2017.

Source: Pakistan Today December 30, 2017 15:11 UTC