ConflictBarometer_2015

MIDDLE EAST AND MAGHREB
single attacks in the country in the last ten years. Throughout
the year, at least 948 civilians were killed and 1,183 injured
in Diyala.
IS maintained control of large parts of Nineveh Governorate,
at the border to Syria. On January 10, a total of 30 Peshmerga
fighters were killed when they halted an IS attempt to retake
the city of Gwerm. Eleven days later, about 5,000 Peshmerga
captured villages near Mosul also disrupting several supply
routes. During the battles, 200 IS militants were killed. On
January 22, 16 airstrikes by the US-led coalition destroyed
IS infrastructure and equipment in and around Mosul. IS
released a video on February 3 showing its members burning
a Jordanian jet pilot to death in early January. In reaction,
Jordan's military carried out airstrikes on February 4 in Mosul,
killing 55 IS militants among them an IS commander known
as ''Prince of Nineveh''. The incidents were accompanied by
mass demonstrations against IS in Jordan's capital Amman.
Coalition airstrikes on Mosul carried out on March 18 reportedly
injured al-Baghdadi. The recapture of Mosul by 30,000
IAF troops was postponed several times. On November 13,
Peshmerga retook the town of Sinjar from IS. The Kurdish
fighters were supported by Yazidi militias and fighters from
the Syrian-Kurdish YPG. With the fall of Sinjar, IS lost control
over Highway 47, a main supply route between ar-Raqqa and
Mosul. Throughout the year, at least 935 civilians were killed
and 304 injured in Mosul governorate.
Control of the central Iraqi Salahuddin governorate, hosting
the city of Tikrit and the country's biggest oil refinery
in the town of Baiji, was heavily contested. On March 3,
IAF took control of oil fields in eastern Tikrit, marking the
start of the city's recapture. At least 20,000 soldiers were
deployed, backed by Sunni tribes as well as Shiite militias
and advised by Iranian Quds forces. Six days later, security
forces recaptured the city of al-Alam, cutting off IS' last
communication line to its other territories. From March 11
to 16, they pushed into Tikrit, firing about 200 mortar shells.
On March 25, the US-led coalition carried out 17 airstrikes
on Tikrit, assisting the security forces advance into the city.
On April 2, IAF recaptured the city center after three days of
fighting. Shiite militias withdrew from Tikrit after they had
been accused of looting and vandalizing in the Sunni city,
meeting a condition by the US that only the Iraqi government
was to be in charge of the troops in Tikrit for further airstrikes
[→Iraq (Shiite militant groups)]. Fighting between IAF and the
remaining IS militants in Tikrit lasted until April 17. At least
1,000 security forces and allied fighters as well as over 800
IS militants were killed during the recapture. Between April
11 and June 24, IS controlled parts of the Baiji Oil Refinery,
but was increasingly engaged in fighting by Shiite militias
from July onwards. On October 14, IAF supported by Shiite
militias launched a large-scale offensive to retake the city
and the oil refinery. Approx. 50 pro-government forces and
at least 1,920 IS militants were killed in the offensive. Nine
days later, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared Baiji
free of IS militants. Throughout the year, at least 541 civilians
were killed and 480 injured in Salahuddin.
In Kirkuk Governorate, IS and Peshmerga controlled different
areas, with the latter holding the city of Kirkuk and most
of the surrounding oil fields. On January 27, Peshmerga,
supported by coalition airstrikes, repelled an IS attack on
Kirkuk and regained control of areas west of the city in the
following days. Throughout the year, at least 203 civilians
were killed and 106 injured. (ska)
AFGHANISTAN
In Afghanistan, violence involving IS concentrated in Nangarhar
province in the East and Farah province in the West.
The group fought against Afghan and US government forces
as well as the Taliban. The Afghan National Security Forces
(ANSF) included the Afghan National Army (ANA) and Afghan
Local Police (ALP). The Afghan IS offshoot reportedly recruited
large numbers of former Taliban fighters from both
Afghanistan and Pakistan [→ Afghanistan (Taliban et al.)].
On January 16, Gen. John Campbell, commander of US
and NATO forces in Afghanistan, stated that IS had begun
recruiting in the country. According to local officials, IS
militants, led by two former Taliban members, had set up a
training facility in the Khak-i-Safaid district, Farah. On January
26, IS spokesman Abu Mohammad al-Adnani announced
the group's expansion to Khorasan, referring to a historical
region comprising parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan. He also
declared Hafez Saeed Khan the leader of IS in this region,
with former Taliban commander Mullah Abdul Rauf as his
deputy. Two days later, the Taliban announced that it had
captured 45 IS members in Kajaki district, Helmand province,
among them Rauf. On February 9, US forces killed Rauf and
two others in a drone strike in Kajaki, Helmand.
A suicide attack on the Kabul Bank in Jalalabad, Nangarhar,
on April 18 killed at least 33 people and injured over 140.
While the local IS outfit claimed responsibility for the attack,
high-ranking IS member Abdul Rahim Muslim Dost later denied
IS involvement. In late May, Taliban members captured
Maulvi Abbas, one of its former leaders who had defected
to IS. Subsequent clashes between IS and Taliban in Batikot,
Nangarhar, on May 26 left two IS and three Taliban fighters
dead. One day later, Taliban expelled IS militants from two
villages in Anar Dara district, western Farah. Reportedly,
numerous militants on both sides were killed and about 40
families fled their homes.
On May 30, the ANA killed at least 16 IS and Taliban militants
in an airstrike in Anar Dara. The next day, Taliban militants
attacked IS positions in the same area. The clashes left several
militants on both sides dead and led to the withdrawal
of some IS fighters. Others surrendered to the Taliban.
On June 16, the Taliban addressed IS leader al-Baghdadi in
an open letter, urging him to stop interference in Afghanistan
and to adopt formal ways of communication between the two
groups in order to prevent misunderstandings. The group
threatened to react harshly if IS activities in Afghanistan
continued. On June 22, lawmakers in the Wolesi Jirga urged
the government to counter the influence of IS, warning of a
further deterioration of the security situation. Six days later,
First Deputy Chief Executive Officer Deputy Mohammad
Khan officially acknowledged IS presence in the country and
called for the surrender of both IS and Taliban. In Nangarhar
region, MP Hazrat Ali urged the residents to revolt against IS
and criticized the lack of government response.
At the beginning of July, ANSF intensified its air and ground
operations in the eastern regions. Airstrikes killed up to 98
Taliban and IS militants. At least eight civilians died, several
schools were closed, and more than 200 families displaced
due to heavy inter-militant fighting in Nangarhar on July
4. On July 10, the Afghan National Directorate of Security
announced the killing of IS leader Khan in an US airstrike.
IS denied his death, but admitted the killing of two other
high-ranking members.
On July 28, security forces killed eight IS fighters in a raid in
Jalalabad, among them the two commanders Ghulam Farooq
and Mir Wais. The Taliban and IS engaged in heavy fighting in
Haska Mina district, Nangahar, on August 5, leaving at least
ten dead and four wounded. A US drone strike targeting
the battle area killed at least 60 fighters of both groups. In
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