Iraqi insurgency

The French government said on May 27 that it would take "the necessary steps" to try to prevent Iraq from carrying out the death penalty against three French citizens convicted of fighting alongside the ISIL.

Arab inhabitants of Syria's Deir al-Zor began a third week of pro-tests against the rule of YPG, the largest wave of unrest to sweep the oil-rich region since the U.S.-backed forces took over the territory from ISIL nearly 18 months ago, residents, witnesses and tribal figures said.

ISIL's media network on April 29 published a threatening video message purporting to come from its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in what would be his first appearance since declaring the jihadists' now-defunct "caliphate" five years ago. 

A Turkish court has acquitted an ISIL emir's wife in a case concerning the Aug. 20, 2016, attack carried out in the southeastern province of Gaziantep.

Turkish Ministry of National Defense has said it "neutralized" more than 3,000 ISIL militants and destroyed more than 21,000 ISIL targets.

The capsize of the boat, which was carrying families to a recreational spot on an island in the Tigris River on March 21, was the most deadly incident in the northern city since it was recaptured from ISIL in a bloody and destructive conflict in 2017.

ISIL no longer holds any territory in Syria, a White House spokeswoman said on March 22.

A bullish U.S. President Donald Trump predicted on March 20 that the ISIL would be wiped off the map within hours, as he unfurled printouts showing the jihadists' shrinking presence in Iraq and Syria.

Iraqi President Barham Salih said foreign ISIL fighters tried in Iraq could be handed death sentences, according to an interview published by Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National on March 8.

Iraqi President Barham Salih said foreign ISIL fighters tried in Iraq could be handed death sentences, according to an interview published by Abu Dhabi-based newspaper The National on March 8.