© GRAPHIC NEWSSources: Al Monitor, Institute for the Study of War Picture: Associated Press

ISIS – Islamic State in Iraq and the LevantGoverned byKurdistanregionalgovernment

60 miles100km

Damascus

Baghdad

ISIS presenceCities underISIS controlRecent fighting

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

RashadSulayman BegBaiji

Mosul

RaqqaKirkuk

Tikrit

RamadiBalad

Fallujah

Deir al Zawr

I R A Q

T U R K E Y

S Y R I A

J O R D A NS A U D I

A R A B I A

I R A N

LE

BA

NO

N

K U W A I T

KIRKUKPROVINCE

SALAHEDINPROVINCEANBAR

PROVINCE

DEIR AL ZAWRPROVINCE

RAQQAPROVINCE

NINEVEHPROVINCE

ISIS*: Jihadistgroup with estimated 11,000 fighters,including 3,000 foreigners

2012: AQI launches BreakingWalls campaign with over 560 bombattacks and release of more than500 inmates from Abu Ghraib prison

Apr 2013: Al-Baghdadi announcesmerger with Syrian jihadist rebelgroup, al-Nusra Front, to create ISIS.Merger rejected by al-Nusra

2013-14: ISIS takes control ofSyria’s Raqqa and Deir al Zawrprovinces, beheading rival jihadists

Jan 2014: ISIS takes control ofFallujah and Ramadi

Feb: Kills emissary of Al-Qaeda’sleader Ayman al-Zawahiri

Jun 10: ISIS captures city of MosulJun 11-13: Baiji and Tikrit fall to

ISIS. Hundreds of U.S. contractorsevacuated from Balad airbase

Origin: Formed in early years ofIraq War under name Al-Qaeda inIraq (AQI). Known for decapitationvideos released on internet

2004: Leader Abu Musabal-Zarqawi pledges allegiance toOsama bin Laden. Al-Zarqawi iskilled by U.S. forces in 2006

2006-10: AQI’s destructivecapability reduced after U.S. troopsurge. U.S. and Iraqi forces captureor kill 34 top AQI leaders

2011: Following departure of U.S.troops, AQI begins bombing campaign.U.S. places $10 million bounty onleader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi*Final “S” in ISIS stems from Arabic word “al-Sham” which refers to Levant