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U.S. soldiers assigned to 1st Battalion, 320 Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) fire an M777 howitzer from Kara Soar Base, Iraq, during a night operation in support of the Iraqi army on June 3, 2016. Fire missions are one way the coalition assists the Iraqi army to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. Advise-and-assist teams enable Iraqi security forces as they prepare for upcoming operations by sharing intelligence and helping them develop security strategies and targeting plans. Army photo by Spc. Jaquan P. Turnbow

July 23, 2016

Task Force Strike Soldiers shine a guiding light

SOUTHWEST ASIA — It was after midnight when an Iraqi intelligence officer partnered with the 1st Squadron, 75th Cavalry Regiment in northern Iraq received a phone call from his brother. The message was terse: His brother lived in a nearby city currently occupied by ISIL, and he was leading a large group of civilians away from the location. The group was in trouble; they had come across rough terrain and suddenly became lost.

A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a USAF A-10 Thunderbolt II over Turkey, Jan. 6, 2016, to support Operation Inherent Resolve. The operation is the coalition intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Corey Hook

July 22, 2016

Coalition Continues Strikes to Defeat ISIL, OIR Spokesman Says

WASHINGTON — Army Col. Christopher Garver , spokesman for Operation Inherent Resolve, said the coalition has conducted 73 strikes inside Iraq over seven days in support of Iraqi security forces.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter, left back, listens to remarks from French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, right back, during a meeting of defense ministers and senior leaders from the coalition to counter the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant at Joint Base Andrews, Md., July 20, 2016. DoD photo by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Brigitte N. Brantley

July 20, 2016

Carter: Defense Ministers Agree on Next Steps in Counter-ISIL Fight

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Ash Carter briefed reporters on a meeting he hosted for the representatives of more than 30 nations to discuss the ongoing military campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and plans for upcoming offensives.

efense Secretary Ash Carter speaks during a news conference in Kabul, Afghanistan, July 12. Carter visited Afghanistan to meet with government leaders about the Resolute Support mission. (DoD photo by Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Tim D. Godbee)

July 13, 2016

Carter discusses 3 major decisions regarding Afghanistan

Defense Secretary Ash Carter discussed three major decisions that the United States has made regarding Afghanistan during a news conference yesterday in the Afghan capital of Kabul.

U.S. Soldiers with 1st Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), fire an M777 howitzer at Kara Soar Base, Iraq,in May. According to Defense Secretary Ash Carter, they'll be joined soon by an additional 560 U.S. troops. (U.S Army photo by Sgt. Paul Sale)

July 11, 2016

Carter: 560 U.S. troops to deploy to Iraq

During his visit to Baghdad today, Defense Secretary Ash Carter met with Iraqi leaders, coalition commanders and U.S. troops and also announced that the United States, in close consultation with the Iraqi government, will deploy an additional 560 troops to Iraq to assist in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, according to a DoD news release.

Tech. Sgt. Brent Spotts, 455th Expeditionary Operational Support Squadron, at Jalalabad Airfield, Afghanistan. Spotts is forward deployed from the 455th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron in Bagram. As the only civil engineer in Jalalabad, Spotts is responsible for the airfield electrical systems, structure, pavements and equipment. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Justyn M. Freeman)

July 7, 2016

8,400 U.S. troops to remain in Afghanistan through January

The situation in Afghanistan remains “precarious,” President Barack Obama said here today, and that is why he will keep 8,400 U.S. service members in country through the end of his term.

After air assaulting into a landing zone, Spc. Khalid Hermez, from Detroit, pulls security as a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter departs the landing zone. U.S. Soldiers from the 1st Air Cavalry Brigade and the 34th Iraqi Army Brigade performed a joint air assault mission and patrol to check on living conditions of a small Iraqi village in 2009. (Army photo by Sgt. Travis Zielinski)

July 5, 2016

Linguist returns to Iraq after 20-year odyssey

With Iraq in the clutches of Saddam Hussein, one man made the critical decision to leave his native country. It took him 20 years but he finally returned, serving with the U.S. Army, now attempting to rebuild his nation. For Spc. Khalid Hermez, from Detroit, linguist, Company F, 3rd Battalion, 227th Aviation Brigade, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division

An M777 howitzer with 1st Battalion, 320 field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) stands ready to fire from Kara Soar Base, Iraq, earlier this month. (U.S. Army Photos by Spc. Jaquan P. Turnbow)

June 30, 2016

Local forces in Iraq, Syria increase pressure on ISIL

Iraqi forces have begun working toward Mosul after their victory in Fallujah this week against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and the Syrian Democratic Forces are tightening a cordon around Manbij in an operation led by the Syrian Arab coalition.

Iraqi soldiers practice their sitting firing position earlier this month at Camp Taji, Iraq. Defense Secretary Ash Carter has priased Iraqi security forces for their work in liberating the city of Fallujah from ISIL. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Jessica Hurst)

June 28, 2016

Carter hails Iraqi success in Fallujah

Defense Secretary Ash Carter today congratulated Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and the Iraqi people for freeing the city of Fallujah from the grip of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

A British soldier with the Royal Army Medical Corps helps an Iraqi soldier enrolled in the Junior Leaders Course (JLC) prepare a tourniquet during a skills evaluation at Camp Taji, Iraq, earlier this year. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Paul Sale)

June 27, 2016

U.S., UK to maintain close ties in ISIL fight

Defense Secretary Ash Carter told his United Kingdom counterpart State Secretary for Defense Michael Fallon that the two nations will always enjoy a special relationship reflected in close defense ties