Fallujah

The Iraqi military will use a medieval tactic to keep control of Fallujah after recapturing it from the Islamic State group last month: It is digging a trench around the city.

Iraqi government forces on Saturday recaptured an air base in northern Iraq from the Islamic State, a victory hailed by the prime minister as a key step ahead of the long-awaited operation to push the militants from the northern city of Mosul.

A senior Iraqi commander declared that the city of Fallujah was “fully liberated” from Islamic State militants on Sunday, after a more than month-long military operation.

Iraqi forces gained control of the main hospital in Fallujah on Saturday and were clearing mines after driving the Islamic State from most of the city.

President Bashar Assad vowed Tuesday his troops would “liberate” every inch of Syria, just like they recaptured the ancient town of Palmyra from the Islamic State.

Iraqi forces secured the southern edge of ISIS stronghold of Fallujah on Sunday, two weeks after the launch of an operation to recapture the city, the Iraqi special forces commander overseeing the operation said.

Iraq’s special forces completed a troop buildup around Fallujah on Sunday ahead of an operation to retake the Islamic State-held city west of Baghdad, a military officer said, as the militants attacked a newly-liberated town to the west.