The Islamic State’s Ninawa province has released a video highlighting its use of improvised weapons of war in the battle for Mosul, Iraq. The weapons include: vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices (VBIEDs) with armor attached, modified drones, and a remote-controlled rocket launcher. Children or young adolescents used as “martyrdom” bombers are also featured in the propaganda production.
The Islamic State claims to have carried out 1,112 suicide attacks in Iraq and Syria during 2016. Additional suicide bombers were deployed in Libya and elsewhere. If the group’s claims are accurate, then the so-called caliphate has been using “martyrs” at a historically high rate.
The Islamic State launched an assault on Syrian regime positions in the Homs province earlier today. The so-called caliphate’s propaganda arm and other outlets report that Syrian government forces suffered dozens of casualties. Bashar al Assad’s men and their allies recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra in March. The two sides have repeatedly clashed in Homs, including near Palmyra, since then.
Amaq News Agency claims the Islamic State still controls four neighborhoods inside Sirte, Libya. Amaq says that special forces from four Western countries (US, UK, France and Italy) are involved in the offensive. The jihadists have lost significant ground in and around the city since May.
The Islamic State’s Amaq News Agency has claimed responsibility for two attacks in Europe. One of them occurred on July 24 in Ansbach, Germany, when a terrorist blew himself up outside of a music festival. The other occurred at a church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, France this morning. Both “operations” were carried out “in response to calls to target nations in the coalition fighting the Islamic State,” Amaq said.