The fight by a combination of Iraqi, Iranian, and U.S. forces to retake the city of Fallujah from Islamic State (ISIS) began with claims that it might take only a matter of days. But even from the start, there were warnings of terrible civilian losses; reports say that up to 50,000 people are still in the city alongside fewer than 1,000 ISIS paramilitaries determined to defend it.
And early suggestions that the loss of Fallujah would be a serious military blow to ISIS were countered by reports that it has been making gains elsewhere, not least around Syria’s second city, Aleppo.
As the fighting around Fallujah intensified, it became clear that the ISIS forces there are capable of staging counterattacks against the more than 10,000 troops and militias ranged against them, who are backed by U.S. air power. Furthermore, while this was happening, elsewhere in Iraq other ISIS groups have been continuing the devastating attacks on Shia communities, with a series of car bombs near Baghdad killing 24 people and injuring many more.
