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While Republicans continue to smear President Obama’s foreign policy achievements, especially the historic neutralization of the Iranian nuclear program, the United States has continued making substantial progress in the war against Daesh (ISIS/ISIL). TheCoalition Joint Task Force for Operation Inherent Resolve announced in January that the terrorist group has lost 40% of its territory in Iraq and 20% of its territory in Syria, as airstrike-supported offensives by Iraqi security forces liberated the major cities of Ramadi and Tikrit. US forces also eliminated the commander of the Baaj district of Mosul, Hajim Ahmed al-Aswad, earlier this morning.
Recent events have thrown yet another wrench into the operations of Daesh. A coalition airstrike recently took out a “cash storage” facility in Mosul that held millions of dollars; prompting the terrorist group to announce it will be forced to cut their fighters’ salaries in half. The fighters used to make between $400 and $1,200 a month, plus a $50 stipend for their wives and $25 for each child. The coalition has been specifically targeting the other main source of money for Daesh, taking out oil refiners and transportation trucks that smuggle illegal oil. That oil then resold for huge profits, ironically to their own enemies, the Syrian Assad Regime, and possibly to Turkey, which has long turned a blind eye to the terrorists over the border in hopes they will destroy the Kurdish rebels that are vying for their independence.
Daesh makes most of its money by extorting it from the local population, but the coalition’s efforts to cut off other sources of income are proving fruitful. As their finances fail, pressure from inside their little “caliphate” will continue to grow. Daesh will soon learn that actual governance is much harder than terrorizing civilians.
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