The Iraqi military has expanded its zone of control around the city of Ramadi, and now has direct access to a major army base in the western part of the country. Reuters reports that Iraqi forces seized control of the road that passes through al-Khaldiya, which links Ramadi to Baghdad and the Habbaniya military base. Ramadi was recaptured from the Islamic State in December, and represented a significant victory for the Iraqi military. Control over the road through al-Khaldiya will allow security forces to more readily support Ramadi, as well as improve their ability to apply pressure to Falluja – which is still under Islamic State control.
Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight by becoming a Cipher Brief Subscriber+
Member.
Related Articles
Conflict is One Part History, One Part Petraeus Memoir
OPINION — David Petraeus and Andrew Roberts are getting lots of attention for their outstanding new book, Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from [...] More
What We Should Have Learned About Groupthink from the Iraq War
OPINION - As we approach the 20th anniversary of the Iraq invasion, we should reflect on what lessons the United States may have gleaned from the [...] More
