BAGHDAD –
Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials congratulated Iraq’s government and its security forces today on their victory against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria in Iraq’s Qaim district, located in western Anbar province, U.S. Central Command officials announced in a news release.
The liberation of Qaim and the key border crossing with Syria is a significant milestone in the ongoing campaign against ISIS, Centcom officials said. The Iraqis, with the support of the global coalition, have now liberated nearly all of the territory once held by ISIS in Iraq, they said.
“Iraqi security forces have fought hard to reach this point, and their battle-proven troops captured ISIS’s last Iraqi stronghold swiftly and thoroughly,” said Army Maj. Gen. Robert P. White, commander of OIR’s ground forces.
“The threat remains, and there is still hard work to do, but we will continue to stand side by side with the Iraqi government and the [Iraqi forces] to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS,” White said.