Timeline of ISIL-related events (2016)

For other also not directly ISIL-related actual events see Battle of Ramadi (2015–16), Timeline of the Syrian Civil War (May–August 2016), Timeline of the Iraq War (2016), East Aleppo offensive (November 2015–present), Northern Aleppo offensive (March–June 2016), Aleppo offensive (June–August 2016), 2016 Southern Aleppo campaign, 2016 Khanasir offensive, Latakia offensive (2015–present), Palmyra offensive (March 2016), Siege of Fallujah (2016), Battle of Fallujah (2016), Manbij offensive (2016), Al-Shaddadi offensive (2016), Northern Raqqa offensive (May 2016), Anbar offensive (2015–present), Hīt offensive (2016), Mosul offensive (2016), Yemeni civil war (2015–present), Timeline of events related to Abu Sayyaf (2016), Turkish involvement in the Syrian Civil War, ISIL rocket attacks on Turkey (2016), Turkey–ISIL conflict, Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present), ISIL insurgency in Tunisia, Insurgency in Egypt (2013–present), 2016 in Afghanistan, Timeline of Boko Haram insurgency, Second Libyan Civil War, Libyan Civil War (2014–present), War in Somalia (2009–present), and List of clashes in the North Caucasus in 2016.

Map of the Levant (22 June 2015)

Actual map of the Levant more detailed at Insurgencies Map

Northern Aleppo offensive (8 February 2016)

Boko Haram/ISIL Current military situation, as of 25 December 2015

  Controlled by the Nigerian government

  Controlled by Boko Haram/ISIL

Libya current military situation (as of 6 January 2016)

  Controlled by the Council of Deputies and Libyan National Army

  Controlled by the New General National Congress and Libya Shield Force

  Controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

  Controlled by the Benghazi, Derna and Ajdabiya Shura Councils

  Controlled by the Petroleum Facilities Guard (PFG)

  Controlled by Tuareg forces

  Controlled by local forces

Territory Changes 2014–2016

Timeline

January 2016

• 1 January ISIL fighters mount an attack on the newly recaptured Iraqi city of Ramadi using suicide bombers and VBIEDs. They are repelled by the Iraqi Army operating in conjunction with US-led Coalition air strikes.^[1]
• 2 January ISIL's Sinai Province claims responsibility for a rocket attack on the Israeli city of Sderot the preceding Friday.^[2]
• 3 January ISIL releases a video showing the execution of five Syrian men who they allege were British spies. In the video, a masked, British-accented militant, believed to be Siddhartha Dhar, taunts UK Prime Minister David Cameron before shooting the "spies" in the head. The footage later features one of the group's English-speaking child soldiers.^[3][4][5]
• 3 January Camp Speicher, an Iraqi military base, is attacked by multiple ISIL suicide and car bombers, with a death toll of at least 15 Iraqi military and police personnel.^[6]
• 4 January The Libyan oil depot town of Sidra is attacked by ISIL car bombers. Two militiamen guarding the port are killed, and a large oil tank is destroyed.^[7][8]
• 6 January Sky News releases pictures and videos shot inside an ISIL explosives research facility in Raqqa, the group's capital. The largely instructional media show militants recommissioning old heat-seeking missiles and experimenting with remote-controlled car bombs.^[9]
• 6 January In an online article, ISIL threatens to attack the Saudi Arabian prisons of al-Ha'ir and Tarfiya. The statement is believed to be in response to a mass execution of Islamist convicts the previous Saturday.^[10]
• 7 January Parisian police shoot dead a cleaver-wielding man as he attempts to enter a police station; an ISIL emblem is later found on his person. The incident coincides with the 1st anniversary of the Charlie Hebdo shooting.^[11]
• 7 January The Iraqi military claims that ISIL spokesman Abu Mohammad al-Adnani was severely wounded in an airstrike several days before.^[12]
• 7 January ISIL truck bombs a police training center in the Libyan city of Zliten, killing at least 65 and wounding over 100. The group claims responsibility for the attack several days later.^[13]
• 7 January ISIL gunmen attack a busload of Israeli tourists in Giza, Egypt. No casualties are reported.^[14]
• 8 January A Philadelphia, Pennsylvania man shoots and severely injures a policeman parked in a patrol car. Upon being arrested and questioned, he cites ISIL ideology as a motivation for his attack.^[15]
• 8 January US officials announce an overhaul of the nation's methods of countering ISIL propaganda. Efforts will be made to deliver localized messages more relevant to Muslim populations; English-language material will be discontinued. Additionally, a new counterterrorism task force based at the United States Department of Homeland Security is announced.^[16]
• 8 January A Raqqa-based ISIL fighter executes his mother in front of a large crowd. She reportedly disapproved of his allegiance to the group and urged him to leave, which prompted her arrest.^[17]
• 8 January A 24-year-old Palestinian American refugee is indicted on federal charges relating to ISIL. Prosecutors allege that he attempted to materially support the group, and also accuse him of lying about his affiliation during his naturalization.^[18]
• 8 January ISIL claims responsibility for the stabbing death of a Christian convert in Jhenaidah District, Bangladesh. Local police dispute elements of the group's claim.^[19]
• 9 January Two militants believed to belong to ISIL's Sinai Province storm a hotel in the Egyptian resort town of Hurghada. They stab and injure two foreign tourists before being neutralized by police.^[20]
• 9 January ISIL's Sinai Province claims responsibility for the killing of two Cairo policemen earlier that day. Both attackers, one a 21-year-old student, are subsequently shot dead by additional police.^[21]
• 10 January Three suspects in the murder of an anti-ISIL activist filmmaker are arrested in Gaziantep, Turkey.^[22]
• 10 January The Royal Air Force uses Brimstone missiles for the first time against Syrian ISIL targets.^[23]
• 11 January ISIL claims responsibility for two bombings near a casino in the Iraqi city of Miqdadiyah.^[24]
• 11 January ISIL attacks a shopping center in a Shiite neighborhood of Baghdad with a car bomb and gunmen. 18 casualties were reported.^[25]
• 11 January A 15-year-old Turkish citizen attacks and injures a Jewish teacher with a machete in the French city of Marseille. Prosecutors allege that he stated his actions were committed "in the name of Allah and the Islamic State".^[26]
• 12 January A Saudi-born ISIL suicide bomber detonates near the Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey. 11 people, all foreigners, are killed, and 14 are injured.^[27]
• 13 January ISIL's Khorasan Province attacks the Pakistani consulate in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. 7 Afghan security personnel are killed, but no casualties or injuries are reported from within the consulate.^[28]
• 13 January Militants affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province attacked Pakistan's consulate in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, killing 9 people and injuring 12 more^[29]
• 14 January The United States Department of State officially designates ISIL's Khorasan Province as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. The designation imposes financial sanctions on the group.^[30]
• 14 January Turkish ground forces mount a major offensive against ISIL positions in retaliation for the earlier suicide bombing.^[31]
• 14 January ISIL gunmen and suicide bombers perpetrate the 2016 Jakarta attacks against various targets in Central Jakarta. In total, there were 4 civilian deaths and 24 injuries. 4 belligerents were killed and 3 others were captured by the police.^[32]
• 14 January ISIL forces briefly capture a Northern Iraqi Sunni village, but are quickly repelled by the Iraqi army.^[33]
• 16 January ISIL militants execute dozens of civilians and pro-Assad fighters in Deir ez-Zor, Syria. Over 400 civilians are reportedly abducted and taken towards Raqqa, ISIL's capital.^[34][35]
• 16 January Malaysian police announce the arrest of a local ISIL member who allegedly planned a suicide attack. He is also suspected of hanging ISIL flags in multiple Malaysian states.^[36]
• 16 January The FBI arrests two Woodbridge, Virginia men who allegedly planned to travel abroad to join ISIL.^[37]
• 18 January ISIL advances on Syrian regime forces in Deir ez-Zor Province, seeking to consolidate its control over the territory.^[38]
• 19 January ISIL announces significant pay cuts for its Syrian fighters. Militants' salaries will be reduced by half, though food allowances remain unaffected.^[39]
• 19 January Dabiq magazine publishes a eulogy for Jihadi John, confirming the high-profile ISIL member's death in a drone strike the previous November.^[40]
• 20 January Satellite photography is released that confirms ISIL's demolition of Dair Mar Elia, Iraq's oldest Christian monastery.^[41]
• 20 January Defense ministers of the anti-ISIL coalition's leading nations attend a planning conference in Paris, France, vowing to "accelerate and intensify" their military campaign against ISIL. In the meeting, the US asks its partners for greater amounts of special operations support.^[42]
• 20 January The Obama administration expands rules of engagement to help the US military more effectively combat ISIL's Afghan presence. The new guidelines permit broader use of airstrikes against suspected ISIL militants in Afghanistan.^[43]
• 21 January François Hollande, the President of France, pledges greater French support for anti-ISIL Arab and Kurdish forces.^[44]
• 22 January Two Luton men are convicted for their roles in a 2014 pro-ISIL leafleting campaign held on London's Oxford Street.^[45]
• 22 January Hafiz Saeed Khan, the emir of ISIL's Khorasan Province, claims in a Dabiq interview that Kashmiri militants have pledged allegiance to the group.^[46]
• 22 January The National Investigation Agency arrests 14 ISIL-linked militants across 4 Indian states.^[47]
• 22 January ISIL's Sinai province claims responsibility for a 19 January explosion at a booby-trapped Cairo apartment building that killed 3 civilians and 7 police personnel. A Muslim Brotherhood-linked militant group makes a competing claim of responsibility.^[48]
• 23 January ISIL releases a video that features a militant urging the group's followers to recapture Spain, in apparent reference to the historic territory of al-Andalus.^[49]
• 23 January At a press conference in Istanbul, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden expresses confidence in joint US-Turkish military action against ISIL should upcoming peace talks with the Assad regime fail. His remarks are made after a meeting with Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu; other topics discussed included joint support for Sunni Arab rebels.^[50]
• 23 January Russia and Syrian warplanes launch a wave of airstrikes on ISIL positions in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor. Over 70 civilians are reportedly killed.^[51]
• 23 January The U.S.-led coalition performs 23 air strikes on ISIL positions across Syria and near Ramadi, Iraq. The strikes are focused on destroying the group's ammunitions and property, as well as denying militants access to tactically significant terrain.^[52]
• 23 January ISIL launched suicide attacks in the Kilo 70 area west of Ramadi, and in the Tal Msheheidah east of Ramadi, as well as areas to the north of Ramadi; the ensuing clashes and airstrikes led to the deaths of 62 ISIL militants and 48 Iraqi fighters.^[53]
• 23 January The Army launched a full attack west of Kuweires with the intention of linking up with government-held territory at the Sheikh Najjar Industrial District of Aleppo city.
• 24 January Malaysian police announce the arrest of 7 militants who allegedly belonged to a local ISIL cell. The men had reportedly received orders from ISIL in Syria to commit suicide bombings.^[54]
• 24 January ISIL releases a video featuring and eulogizing 9 of the 12 November 2015 Paris attackers. The footage depicts them executing several hostages, as well as threatening Western governments and civilians with similar attacks.^[55]
• 25 January In an eight-page report, Europol warns of likely attempts at Paris-style attacks elsewhere in Europe. The report speaks of ISIL's "willingness and […] capacity" to carry out subsequent mass-casualty attacks, and cites lone wolves and radicalization in the Syrian refugee diaspora as specific risk factors.^[56]
• 25 January A Malaysian ISIL affiliate group publishes a Malay-language video threatening attacks if recent police crackdowns on local ISIL elements continue. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak responds, elaborating that Malaysia is "far from immune" to ISIL-inspired extremism.^[57]
• 25 January Turkish police arrest at least 10 Ankara-based ISIL recruiters.^[58]
• 25 January Police in Kigali, Rwanda's capital, shoot dead a suspected ISIL recruiter after he resists arrest.^[59]
• 25 January At a press conference in Dushanbe, Ramazon Khamroevich Rakhimov, Interior Minister of Tajikistan, claims that over 1,000 Tajik citizens have left to join ISIL.^[60]
• 25 January Iraqi security forces discover over 18 corpses at a mass gravesite in Ramadi. The bodies, some of which had been shot or beheaded, are believed to belong to police and civilians killed by ISIL in May 2015.^[61]
• 27 January A 20-year-old Kosovar citizen accused of pro-ISIL computer hacking makes his first appearance in a US federal court. He allegedly sent the personal information of over 1,300 US military personnel to an ISIL member, who then proceeded to post the list on Twitter.^[62]
• 28 January U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter informs a press conference that the US has already sent "a small number of military personnel" into Libya to reconnoiter and network with local security forces. Later that day, U.S. President Barack Obama directs his national security advisers to support indigenous counter-ISIL efforts in Libya.^[63]
• 28 January ISIL claims responsibility for a suicide car bombing at Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi's residence. The attacker, possibly a former Dutch resident, misses his intended target; 5 security personnel and 1 civilian are instead killed in the explosion.^[64]
• 28 January The US-led Coalition performs 20 airstrikes against ISIL's Syrian and Iraqi presences. The 15 Iraqi strikes were centered around Ramadi and involved the destruction of tactical units and IEDs; the 5 Syrian strikes focused on ISIL's construction infrastructure and additionally hit several of the group's local headquarters.^[65]
• 28 January The U.S. Pentagon recommends the deployment of additional advisers, trainers, and commandos to combat ISIL in Iraq and Syria. The additional personnel would work in a supportive role alongside Iraqi forces, Kurdish peshmerga, and the Syrian opposition.^[66]
• 28 January The 7th Republican Party presidential debate is held, with several candidates taking a characteristically bellicose tone on ISIL-related issues. Ted Cruz called for carpet bombing that would "utterly and completely destroy" the militant group; Marco Rubio advocated for the interrogation of future ISIL prisoners at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp.^[67]
• 28 January ISIL's Sinai Province claims responsibility for an attack on military personnel in Arish, North Sinai's capital. The attack killed 4, including a colonel, and wounded 12.^[68]
• 28 January ISIL suicide bombers targeted an Iraqi army division headquarters in the al-Thirthar area of Ramadi. Four were killed in Coalition airstrikes, but two attacked the main gate of the headquarters, killing 17 Iraqi soldiers, including seven officers, and wounding 46 soldiers. Separately, 15 Iraqi soldiers were killed, and 20 wounded elsewhere in the city in a combination of suicide attacks, sniper fire, and roadside bombs.^[69]
• 28 January ISIL conducted a counter-attack against the villages they lost in the previous days. The subsequent fighting left 20 soldiers and 14 militants dead.^[70] One of the main objectives during the military's assault was the Aleppo Thermal Power Plant.
• 28 January Vice Admiral Clive Johnstone, commander of NATO's Allied Maritime Command, warned that Islamic State militants hope to build a maritime arm that could carry out attacks in the Mediterranean Sea, against tourist and transfer ships.^{[71][72][73][74][75]}
• 29 January Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, the Dutch Minister of Defence, announces that the Netherlands will extend its anti-ISIL airstrikes into Syria. The decision comes after a Paris meeting with her US and French counterparts.^[76]
• 29 January Several suspects in the Metrojet Flight 9268 bombing are reportedly arrested. An ISIL-linked airplane mechanic is accused of planting an IED on board, and three other airport personnel are under investigation for allegedly facilitating him.^[77]
• 31 January Two ISIL suicide bombers perpetrate the 2016 Sayyidah Zaynab bombings. At least 60 are killed near the Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in Damascus, one of Shia Islam's holiest sites. The attackers reportedly targeted a bus carrying Shi'ite militiamen.^[78]
• 31 January ISIL releases a video showing a French militant executing an alleged spy. The Francophone fighter threatens attacks that will make ISIL's adversaries "forget September 11 and Paris", while re-asserting ISIL territorial claims over the Iberian Peninsula.^[79]
• 31 January A prominent Australian ISIL member's death is reported. Neil Prakash, also known as Abu Khaled al-Cambodi, was involved in the group's online recruitment activities.^[80]

February 2016

• 1 February US officials claim that the Obama administration's 2017 defense budget request will include a $7 billion increase to better fund the fight against ISIL.^[81]
• 1 February US Lieutenant General Sean MacFarland, Operation Inherent Resolve's commander, expresses confidence in the coalition's anti-ISIL campaign. He specifically cites the recapture of Ramadi as a "turning point".^[82]
• 1 February A 19-year-old Morganton, North Carolina resident is indicted on federal charges relating to alleged pro-ISIL activities. Prosecutors accuse him of plotting mass shootings to "show his support" for the militant group. He also faces murder charges in the shooting death of a 74-year-old neighbor.^[83]
• 1 February U.S. airstrikes in Nangarhar province, eastern Afghanistan, killing 29 ISIS fighters and struck the terrorist group's FM radio station.^[84]
• 2 February At a foreign ministers' conference in Rome, US Secretary of State John Kerry expresses concern over recent ISIL territorial gains in Libya. Calling the group "apostates" and "a false caliphate", he warns of possible ISIL capture of the country's oil reserves.^[85][86]
• 2 February A Canadian court issues a 10-month peace bond to a vocal ISIL sympathizer. The 23-year-old Winnipegger, who was previously interviewed by Canadian media about his beliefs, is barred from leaving the country and using social media.^[87]
• 2 February Around 300 ISIL fighters were estimated to be remaining in Ramadi's eastern Sajjariyah District, and in the nearby areas.^[88]
• 2 February An ISIL propaganda radio station in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar is destroyed by coalition airstrikes. The attack, which also involved Afghan ground troops, killed 29 militants.^[89]
• 3 February A combined force of Sunni Arab Popular Mobilization Forces units and local peshmerga recapture the Iraqi Kurdistani village of Kudila from ISIL. The militiamen are aided by coalition airstrikes.^[90]
• 3 February Russia's Defence Ministry announces the death of a Russian military adviser in Syria. The adviser, killed earlier that week, was reportedly hit by ISIL mortar fire.^[91]
• 3 February Israeli Major General Nitzan Alon reveals that his country has been sharing intelligence with the anti-ISIL coalition.^[92]
• 3 February In the evening government forces stormed the village of Tayyibah. Soon after ISIL reportedly started to withdraw from the village, while fighting still continued in Tayyibah. Meanwhile, government troops bypassed the plant due to dozens of improvised traps, mines and highly entrenched ISIL fighters in its vicinity.^[93]
• 3 February Government forces captured 11 villages west and northwest of the base and were 13 kilometers from Sheikh Najjar.^[94]
• 3 February The Tiger Forces along with the NDF, Desert Hawks Brigade and Ba'ath Brigades captured Al-Si'in.^[95] In the evening of 3 February, Syrian government forces stormed the village of Tayyibah. Soon afterwards, ISIL reportedly started to withdraw from the village, while fighting still continued in Tayyibah. Meanwhile, Syrian government troops bypassed the Aleppo Thermal Power Plant, due to dozens of improvised traps, mines, and highly entrenched ISIL fighters in its vicinity.^[93]
• 4 February German police arrest two suspected ISIL affiliates in raids across Berlin. The men were allegedly plotting attacks against various public places in the city.^[96]
• 6 February A federal criminal complaint against a Dearborn Heights, Michigan man is unsealed. The 21-year-old, detained on weapons and drug charges, allegedly threatened to "shoot up" a Detroit church in an ISIL-inspired plot.^[97]
• 6 February An Australian man is deported from India after Indira Gandhi International Airport security personnel reportedly find pro-ISIL material on his laptop.^[98]
• 7 February ISIL recaptured two villages,^[99] while government forces captured another village and a hill,^[100][101] bringing them to within 7 kilometers of Sheikh Najjar and closing the ISIL pocket.^[102] An attempted ISIL counter-attack against the hill left 11 militants dead.^[103]
• 7 February A second member of the Beatles is identified. The militant, a 32-year-old Ghanaian-British convert to Islam, was dubbed "Ringo" by his captives.^[104]
• 7 February The United Arab Emirates' Minister of State for Foreign Affairs expresses his country's readiness to deploy ground troops to the anti-ISIL campaign. He indicates that such deployments will be limited in size and suggests that UAE troops will focus on training and support roles.^[105]
• 7 February Spanish police arrest a group of 7 alleged ISIL affiliates across Ceuta. The suspects are believed to have provided "logistical support" for ISIL activities elsewhere. Additionally, the group's leader was reportedly tasked with procuring comfort women for militants.^[106]
• 7 February During a security operation al-Sofiyah District in eastern Ramadi, a booby-trapped house killed 6 Iraqi soldiers and wounded 5 others.^[107]
• 8 February Umm Sayyaf, widow of deceased ISIL commander Abu Sayyaf, is charged by US federal authorities with providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization that resulted in a person's death. She was allegedly complicit in the rape and death of Kayla Mueller, a captured American aid worker.^[108]
• 9 February Government forces seized the final pocket of ISIL resistance in the Husayba Al-Sharqiyah District, which was the last ISIL-held village to the east of Ramadi, thus fully expelling ISIL from the area of Ramadi.^{[109][109][110][111][112]} Afterwards, the Iraqi Government reopened the Ramadi-Habbaniyah Highway.^[111] ISIL militants were still holed up in some farmlands in Khalidiya Island, to the north of the town of Al Khalidiya.^[112]
• 10 February From July 2015 through early February 2016, the United States and other nations conducted 813+ airstrikes in the Ramadi area.^[113][114] It is also the 100th battle that has erupted in Ramadi since 2003.^[115] In February 2016, it was predicted that it would take several months to clear Ramadi city of the bombs ISIL left behind, with at least 9 months needed to clear Ramadi's Tamim District.^[112] At the time, Ramadi had suffered more damage than any other city or town in Iraq.^[112] With 80% of Ramadi left in ruins after months of heavy bombing, as well as scorched earth tactics employed by ISIL, the US and its allies allocated over $50 million to rebuild the city.^{[115][116][117][118]}
• 10 February 9 more Iraqi soldiers from the army's 8th Division were killed by ISIL shelling, in the Sajjariyah District.^[119]
• 11 February ABC news reported the U.S. military had carried out 20 airstrikes on ISIS in eastern Afghanistan in the previous 3 weeks.^[120]
• 13 February The Syrian Army recaptured Jubb al Kalb village, less than one week after losing it to an ISIL counter-attack.^[121][122] The following day, the military captured four villages, including Tayyibah (300 meters from the Power Plant) and Barlehiyah (7 kilometers from government-held territory to the west).^{[123][124][125][126]}
• 15 February RT (TV network) is reporting that Syrian army units and paramilitary forces are reportedly moving into Raqqa province, seizing strategically important areas along the Salamiyah-Raqqa road which leads directly into the Islamic State stronghold.^[127]
• 15 February A car bomb from Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Caucasus Province killed 2 people and injured 17.^[128]
• 16 February The military captured the Power Plant^[129] and two days later seized Al-Siin once again while surrounding ISIS at the Aleppo Thermal Plant.^[130][131]
• 18 February The Syrian Army seized Al-Siin once again, as well as Jubb Al-Ghabishah.^{[131][132][133]}
• 18 February Adel al-Jubeir, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, announced that a US-led ground operation in Syria would focus on fighting ISIS, not the Syrian regime.^[134]
• 18 February ^[135] A large number of local Sunni tribesmen revolted against ISIL, after ISIL beat a woman, among other restrictive practices enforces by ISIL's Al-Hisbah secret police, amid an ongoing siege. ISIL was reported to have withdrawn into Fallujah city, after local Sunnis burned the Al-Hisbah headquarters and clashes spread.^[136][137]
• 19 February An US air raid on suspected ISIS camp resulted in killing 49 people, including two Serbian embassy members, who had been taken hostage by the militiants.^[138]
• 20 February The Syrian Army, backed by the National Defence Force, captured the Aleppo Thermal Power Plant and imposed "full control" over the facility.^[139] 30 ISIS militants were killed and four of their armored vehicles were destroyed during the battle.^[140] Tiger Forces, National Defense Forces and Suqur al-Sahara then captured the village of Balat and its surrounding farms.^[140] In the same day, Suqur al-Sahara and the Cheetah Forces Team 3 captured the village of Turaykiyah, fully besieging the pocket of 800 ISIL fighters in east Aleppo, with their only options being to surrender or be killed.^[141]
• 20 February It was estimated that only 1,000 civilians were living in and around the Ramadi area, after the fierce clashes that erupted during the battle for the city.^[142]
• 20 February The clashes began to die down as ISIL began carrying out mass arrests, and it was reported that there were still some Sunni fighters who were pinned down in parts of Fallujah, who would likely be massacred if the Iraqi Government or the US-led Coalition does not intervene.^[135]
• 20 February A U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reaper crashed at Kandahar airfield.^[143]
• 21 February At least 46 people were killed and several injured in a double car bombs explosion in the city of Homs.^[144] At least 30 people were killed in several bomb blasts near Damascus.^[145]
• 21 February At least 30 people were killed in several bomb blasts near Damascus.^[145] Both incidents were masterminded by ISIS.
• 21 February The last pockets of resistance were overcome, with pro-government forces in possession of all the towns and villages in the Al-Safira plains. It was reported that 700 of the ISIL militants had escaped the encirclement during the previous week as the government forces skirted around their northern flank, leaving 100–150 remaining fighters who were trapped.^[146] 20 villages were seized over the previous 24 hours and 40 kilometers of highway were cleared, putting an end to the 3 month offensive.^[147][148] In addition, 50 ISIL fighters were killed during the previous 24 hours.^[149]
• 21 February In Benghazi the Libyan National Army also managed to take over the rest of Bouatni, while overrunning Hawari and Leithi districts both of which were strongholds of ISIS & Ansar al-Sharia.^[150][151]
• 21 February At 10 p.m. an offensive was launched by ISIL.^[152] By the next day, a joint attack by militants from both ISIL and Al-Qaeda-linked Jund al-Aqsa captured the village of Rasm Al-Nafal, as well as two other points along the Khanasir-Aleppo Road,^[153] cutting the Syrian government's only supply route to Aleppo city.^[154] The jihadists then proceeded to additionally seize six other villages and a hill.^[155][156] A convoy of reinforcements from the town of As-Safira, consisting of the pro-government Palestinian militia Liwa Al-Quds was sent to reopen the road^[157] and by the end of the day they had recaptured the hill.^[155]
• 22 February United States and Russia agree an all party ceasefire that will exclude the ISIS and the al-Qaeda-linked Nusra Front begin on 27 February.^[158]
• 22 February Afghan forces and U.S.-led coalition airstrikes kill a total 43 Islamic State militants in Nangarhar Province during a military operation against ISIS in that region.^[159][160]
• 23 February Jund al-Aqsa and the Free Syrian Army captured the village of Rasm al-Nafal, to the southwest of Lake Jabbul, severing the Ithriyah-Khanasser Highway again for the second time in 5 months. In a coordinated action, ISIL had also captured multiple villages along the southern shore of Lake Jabbul and to the south of Rasm al-Nafal, sealing off more of the Aleppo road and Sheikh Hilal-Ithriyah Road. Counter-attacks by Syrian Arab Army have failed to immediately dislodge militants from the majority of the captured positions.^[152][161]
• 23 February ISIS militants clashed with forces associated with the Sabratha military council inside of Sabratha.^[162] These clashes were followed on the same day by an ISIS offensive that allegedly temporarily seized various buildings after penetrating the city. However, local forces conducted a counterattack against the ISIS militants, reportedly driving them out of the city's centre.^[163] However, fighting continued in Zawagha district.^[164]
• 23 February Two contingents of the Syrian Army's special forces unit known as the Tiger Forces were also sent to help in reestablishing control of the road. Meanwhile, ISIL launched an assault on the town of Khanasir, which began with a failed suicide car-bomb attack against a checkpoint in its outskirts.^[165] Throughout the morning, the military recaptured four out of seven positions they had lost on the road, but ultimately ISIL managed to capture Khanasir.^[166] In the afternoon,^[167] the Tiger Forces launched a general counteroffensive with a missile barrage, followed by a tank assault. The Syrian Army waited before entering the villages ISIL had captured, until Russian airstrikes had dissipated.^[168] The counterattack was launched from two flanks, with the Tiger Forces and Hezbollah assaulting Rasm Al-Nafal from the north, while the Army and the Liwaa Al-Quds Brigade advanced from the south towards Khanasir.^[169] By the evening, government forces recaptured Tal SyriaTel hill, outside Khanasir,^[170] and Rasm Al-Nafal.^[171]
• 24 February In the morning, the Syrian Army re-entered Khanasir and one other village.^[167] Later, they managed to seize Tal Za'rour hill, while also advancing to the central district of Khanasir.^[172] At this time, the cutting of the road by ISIL caused prices of food and medical supplies in Aleppo city to raise dramatically.^[173] On 25 February, the Tiger Forces and their allies recaptured Khanasir, while several hills outside the town were still ISIL-held.^{[174][175][176]} The Army then advanced north of Khanasir and captured the nearby village of Al-Mughayrat,^[177] along with four hilltops north of it (including the large Talat Al-Bayda hill).^[176] At the same time, government forces advancing from the north seized Shilallah al-Kabeera, which they breached the previous day with the help of Russian airstrikes.^[178][179] By the end of the day, government troops reached two more villages and started preparing for a new assault on the next morning.^[176]
• 24 February A Coalition airstrike killed 30 ISIL militants in the Karama Sub-district, just east of Fallujah.^[180]
• 25 February In the aftermath of the combined rebel and ISIL breakthrough south of Lake Jabbul, Syrian Arab Army has launched a large-scale counter-attack, dislodging ISIL from the town of Khanasir, captured by militants 2 days before.^[181]
• 25 February Boko Haram/ISIL fighters are crossing Africa to receive specialized training from Al Shabaab fighters in Somalia, the country's national security chief told the press.^[182]
• 26 February Early on the Syrian Army made more advances, recapturing three villages.^[183][184] The advances nearly besieged ISIL forces in a pocket of villages southwest of Lake Jabbul.^[185] Later in the day, the Syrian Army captured the remaining four villages that ISIL held,^[186] thus clearing the road to Aleppo.^[187] However, elsewhere, ISIL took control of a village near al-Hamam Mountain, that overlooks the supply road.^[188] Syrian Government forces reportedly re-secured the village the following day.^[189]
• 28 February Iraqi government forces repelled a massive ISIL suicide attack in Abu Ghraib and western Baghdad, which was the largest attack carried out by the group in the area in nearly 2 years. The assault left 30 ISIL militants and 30 Iraqi soldiers dead.^[190]
• 28 February The Syrian Army captured the strategic village of Abu Al-Karouz, near Khanasir.^[191] Later on the same day, the Syrian Army completely re-secured the Hama-Aleppo supply route, after capturing the last point on the Sheikh Hilal-Ithriya Highway that was held by ISIL.^[190]

March 2016

• 2 March Militants attacked the Indian consulate in Jalalabad, 5 militants were killed and 9 people were injured.^[192]
• 6 March The Nangarhar Offensive ended; Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani announced in the Afghan parliament that the Islamic State has been defeated in the eastern parts of the country.^[193] Also that day, a U.S. Drone strike in Nangarhar killed 15 ISIL militants.^[194]
• 9 March As many as 10 Taliban insurgents attacked Afghan government buildings in Helmand Province.^[195]
• 14 March Khanneshin district fell to the Taliban.
• Between 10 and 14 March Rebel forces seized three villages, including Dudyan.^[196][197] On 17 March, ISIL recaptured Dudyan,^[198] but lost it again the next day.^[199]
• 16 March Militants loyal to ISIS-K attacked an Afghan police checkpoint in Nangarhar province, killing and wounding 6 policemen.^[200]
• 19 March Rebel forces captured two villages (Toqli and Mregel), north of Aleppo, from ISIL.^[201] The following day, Ahrar ash-Sham and the Sultan Murad Division exchanged artillery and mortar fire with ISIL. At the end of the battle, ISIL recaptured the villages of Toqli and Mregel after inflicting heavy casualties on the rebels. The two sides also launched shells at the villages of Qara Kopri and Ghazl, causing civilian casualties.^[202] On 30 March, rebel forces once again seized Toqli and Mregel. Concurrently, Turkish artillery shelled ISIS positions in the village of Jakkah.^[203]
• 22 March ISIS claims responsibility for two bomb attacks in Brussels, Belgium that left at least 31 dead and more than 220 injured. The attacks occurred at Zaventem Airport (at least 10 dead and 100 wounded)^[204] and at Maelbeek metro station (at least 20 dead and 130 wounded)^[204] near EU buildings.^[205]
• 27 March Syrian Armed Forces, backed by the Russian Air Force and allied militias, recaptured Palmyra from ISIL.^[206]
• 29 March A USAF F-16 crashed on takeoff near Bagram Air Field.^[207]
• 30 March Taliban militants blocked the highway between Dihrawud and Tarin Kot, Uruzgan province Afghan forces cleared them from the highway after 4 days of fighting, afghan forces suffered 15 killed and 8 wounded. Around 100 Taliban insurgents, including foreign fighters, attacked police check points- in particular they clashed with the Taliban in Charhar Bolak district Balkh province which resulting in 2 police officers dead and 8 insurgents dead. The Taliban were pushed back after reinforcements arrived and fighting continued in Jawzjan province.^[208]

April 2016

• Early April A 36-hour mission took place in Kot district in Nangarhar province involving unilateral U.S. strikes against ISIL targets which enabled Afghan special operations forces to move into the district and clear part of a valley.^[209]
• 1 April ISIL launched an offensive toward the Levant Front headquarters in the outskirts of Mregel. The attack was repelled by the Sham Legion and the Falcons of Mount Zawiya Brigade and an ISIL bulldozer was destroyed.^[210] The rebels than proceeded to capture two villages.^[211] Two days later, the al-Moutasem Brigade, the Sultan Murad Brigade, and the Sham Legion launched an offensive toward the ISIL stronghold of al-Rai to the east, capturing eight villages and reached within four kilometers from al-Rai by 4 April.^[212] Some of the villages that were seized were: Tal Sha'er,^[213] Raqbya, Qantra and Shaabanya.^[214] As of 5 April, the rebels had captured at least 16 villages in the area.^[215]
• 1 April – Four Malaysians aboard a tugboat from Manila was kidnapped when they arrived near the shore of Ligitan Island, while leaving other crews unharmed comprising three Myanmar nationals and two Indonesians.^[216]
• 3 April The Syrian Army regained control of Al-Qaryatayn from ISIL.^[217]
• 6 April 39 IS militants are killed, including their Commander Qari Yusif, and 15 others are wounded in clashes with Afghan forces in Nangarhar province.^[218]
• 7 April With close air support from A-10 Thunderbolt IIs,^[219] the rebels captured most of al-Rai^[220] and the nearby border crossing.^[221] As of 8 April, the rebels had full control of al-Rai, along with 17 other villages.^[222][223]
• 8 April – An almost 10-hour long intense firefight happened in Tipo-Tipo, Basilan. Eighteen soldiers were killed while 52 government troops were wounded. Five Abu Sayyaf fighters were also killed in the encounter, including one foreign terrorist – a Moroccan national identified as Mohammad Khattad.^[224]
• Between 9 and 10 March Government forces captured 13 villages previously held by ISIL, near the southern bank of Lake Jabbūl,^[225] forcing ISIL to set up a new defensive line east of the lake.^[226]
• 10 April ISIL launched a counter-attack,^[227] which included a three-pronged attack against the town of Mare',^[228] and quickly recaptured eight villages.^[229][230] Still, the rebels once again seized four of the villages several hours later.^[231][232] During the day, the international Coalition conducted at least 22 air-strikes on ISIL positions as ground fighting continued.^[233] On 11 April, ISIL continued with its counter-attack and retook al-Rai^[234] and four other villages.^[235][236] In all, ISIL had recaptured in the previous two days, beside al-Rai, 17 other villages.^[237] The ISIL counter-offensive included attacks by 11 suicide car-bombers against rebel positions.^[238] At the end of the day, the rebels managed once again to retake control of eight villages.^[237][239]
• 12 April ISIL was reportedly in control of 13 localities they had previously lost, including al-Rai.^[240]
• 13 April The rebels managed to retake three villages once again.^[241][242] However, on 14 April, ISIL seized 10 new villages, practically cutting rebel forces in two. Rebels in the town of Dudyan were effectively surrounded. The most important village that ISIL captured was Hiwar Kallis, about one kilometer south of the Turkish border. During the ISIL advance, hundreds of rebel fighters retreated across the border into Turkey.^{[243][244][245][246][247]} By the following day, the rebels re-secured five villages, including Hiwar Kallis, reconnecting the two rebel areas.^{[248][249][250]}
• 14 April ISIL launched another offensive on Khanasir,^[251] and by the following day they captured hills near the town,^[252] the Duraham Oil Field^[253] and 10 villages. They also seized a large cache of weapons, ammunition and several armored vehicles.^[254] On 16 April, Syrian Army reinforcements were sent to the area,^[255] and by the evening they recaptured all of the territory lost, except the oil field.^[256]
• 15 April Afghan and U.S. forces carried out a raid on the house of Abu Abdullah; a suspected al Qaeda member in Kharwar district, Logar province. Two people were seized along with weapons and intelligence, 12 people (7 of them were ethnic Chechens jihadists), including 3 children, were killed.^[257]
• 15 April – Two Indonesian tugboats from Cebu, namely Henry and Cristi with 10 passengers were attacked by Abu Sayyaf militants. Four passengers were kidnapped, while another five were safe. One of the passenger was injured after being shot but were later rescued by Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency when they arrived into the waters of Malaysia.^[258]
• Between 15 and 16 April The back-and-forth fighting continued, with ISIL once again taking control of two villages, while the rebels took two others.^{[259][260][261]} On 17 April, ISIL again captured the village of Tall Battal, west of Al-Rai.^[262] Four days after ISIL regained most of the villages it had lost, the rebels launched a new assault and once again retook two villages.^[263] However, ISIL retook them the following day,^[264] as well as one other.^[265]

May 2016

• 3 May A U.S. Navy SEAL was killed in Iraq after ISIS attacked a Peshmerga base. Roughly 100 ISIS fighters broke through a front line checkpoint and drove 3 to 5 kilometers to the Peshmerga base. The U.S. responded with F-16s and drones that dropped more than 20 bombs.^[266]
• 6 May Four suspected IS recruits were killed after Saudi police surrounded them. The suspects fired upon the Saudi security forces who required to respond in kind to neutralize the threat, leading to the killing of two and the death of two others who blew themselves up with explosive belts.^[267]
• 6 May Abu Waheeb was killed along with four companions by a US airstrike on an ISIS gathering in the center of Rutba. He was described as the IS "military emir for Anbar".^[268]
• 12 May British special forces blew up an IS suicide truck in Misrata. The British fired a missile after a vehicle, acting as a bomb, approached a bridge leading towards the city.^[269]
• Between 16 and 18 May The Iraqi army launched an offensive to recapture Ar-Rutbah from ISIS. The town was recaptured on 18 May.^[270]
• 23 May Iraq's prime minister Haider al-Abadi announced the beginning of military operations to retake the city of Fallujah.^[271]
• 25 May Four suspected IS recruiters were detained in Belgium. The two were ordered arrested by an investigating judge, one was released under strict conditions and the other released with an electronic bracelet.^[272]
• 26 May Iraqi forces and supporting militias have retaken the town of Karma from the IS as part of the Fallujah offensive.^[273]
• 31 May Syrian Democratic Forces allied with Arab fighters and backed by the International Coalition led by the US launched an offensive on IS held Manbij in northern Syria.^[274]

June 2016

• 8 June The June 2016 Tel Aviv shooting occurred in Tel Aviv, Israel, as two Palestinian gunmen opened fire on patrons at the Max Brenner Cafe in the Sarona Market of Tel Aviv, killing four people and injuring seven others. According to an official indictment filed by the Tel Aviv District Prosecutor's Office the perpetrators were inspired by the Islamic State group.^[275]
• 25 June Two ISIS senior military commanders, Basim Muhammad Ahmad Sultan al-Bajari, ISIS' deputy minister of war, and Hatim Talib al-Hamduni, a military commander in Northern Iraq die in a U.S. airstrike near Mosul.^[276]
• 26 June The city of Fallujah is declared "fully liberated" by a senior Iraqi commander^[277]

July 2016

• 1 July Seven militants storm the Holey Artisan Bakery in Gulshan, Dhaka, Bangladesh taking hostages including foreigners. Twenty-eight people are killed, including 20 hostages (17 of them foreigners), two Bangladeshi police officers, and six gunmen.^[278][279]
• 5 July Some militants attack a bar in Puchong, Malaysia using a hand grenade which is the first attack in Malaysia.^[280] 8 people were injured during the attack.^[281] ISIS also released a video of declaring war on Malaysia and Indonesia.^[282]
• 9 July Iraqi forces, with the help of US-lead coalition air cover, take the strategically important Qayyarah Airfield West 40 miles (60 km) South of Mosul. They reported no resistance from ISIS.^[283]
• 13 July The ISIS confirmed that Omar al-Shishani, one of the top military commanders of ISIS was killed. However, they claim that he was killed in Mosul contrary to earlier reports that he died in Syria.^[284]
• 23 July At least 80 people were killed and more than 230 are injured after two ISIS militants conducted suicide bombings during a protest in Kabul, Afghanistan.^[285]
• 26 July A hostage taking incident by two individuals, who were later killed by police, at the Église St.-Étienne,^[286] a 17th-century Catholic church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, during the Holy Mass, leaves the priest dead and another hostage very critically injured.^[287] The attack was done in the name of ISIS, and an ISIS news channel claimed they were its "soldiers", similar to what happened after other recent European attacks, but there is no independent confirmation, or firm evidence, as of yet that they were directly linked to ISIS.^[288]

August 2016

• 13 August Kurdish and Arab forces with US air support took the town of Manbij in Northen Syria. Manbij was strategically important as it was on the IS supply route from the Turkish border to the de facto IS capital of Raqqa.^[289] A large amount of intellegence material was discovered in Manbij including IS plans to attack targets in Europe, such as France.^[290]
• 24 August The IS launched a new assault on the eastern countryside of Aleppo Governorate, targeting the SAA's defenses just north of the Kuweires Military Airport.^[291]
• 24 August Turkish troops and militia backed by US air strikes captured the Syrian border town of Jarablus in 24 hours.^[292] Turkish sources reported that they had secured the last remaining 91 km stretch of IS occupied Syrian border region next to the Turkish border between Azaz and Jarablus.^[293]
• 30 August Abu Mohammad al-Adnani nom de guerre of Taha Subhi Falaha, Syrian-born official spokesperson and a senior leader of ISIL reported killed in Aleppo Governorate.^[294]

September 2016

October 2016

• 9 October The BBC reported that IS had lost more than 25% of its territory in Syria and Iraq since January 2015. However the rate of loss of territory had slowed in the three months to October because Russia had reduced its air strikes on IS and concentrated on supporting the Assad regime.^[295]
• 16 October Turkish-backed rebels claimed they had captured the symbolically important town of Dabiq. They said "IS members withdrew."^[296]
• 21 October Iraqi Government forces reported they had retaken two more villages South of Mosul - Nanaha and al-Awaizat - killing 15 ISIL fighters.^[297]
• 21 October Islamic State executed hundreds of men and boys in Mosul, in the midst of a major offensive by Iraqi forces to recapture the city^[298]
• 24 October According to Christian humanitarian organization Roads of Success, testimony from survivors indicates Islamic State killed at least six adults by burning them alive in ovens and 250 children by kneading them in a giant dough mixer. At least one child was allegedly killed for refusing to renounce his Christian name.^{[299][300][301][302]}
• 27 November IDF forces came under an ambush by Islamic State militants. Four terrorists were killed while there were no casualties among the IDF forces.^[303]

References