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Source: https://www.nybooks.com/daily/2019/02/13/undefeated-isis-is-back-in-iraq/
Undefeated, ISIS Is Back in Iraq
(New York Review of Books) Aziz Ahmad - Iraq has declared the Islamic State defeated, but the signs of the ISIS resurgence are troubling. According to the Kurdistan Region Security Council, over the past 15 months, hundreds of attacks linked to the group took place in areas that were supposed to have been freed from ISIS. Pushed out of Mosul, Islamic State fighters have regrouped in the provinces of Kirkuk, Diyala, Salahaddin, and Anbar. These guerrillas are mounting ambushes against Iraqi security forces on a scale not seen in years. Even in parts of Mosul itself, reconquered in 2017, the black-and-white ISIS flag has flown again in recent months. Throughout 2018, dozens of village chiefs have been killed across northern Iraq in assassinations, bombings, and kidnappings. At least 13 have been killed since December, including four in Mosul. Improvised bomb attacks are back as a daily feature across the north, with hundreds recorded last year. Major roads have already become "no go" zones for many international organizations.