Syria is completely free of IS

"This is what IS was then and what it is now,"AFPYesterday, citing the statement of US President Donald Trump in response to the press.

During his speech, Trump showed two maps showing the areas occupied by the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq and Syria in November 2016 and March 22. While the old map was covered mostly in red (the color indicating IS forces), the new map no longer showed the presence of the rebels.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders also confirmed on the same day that IS had been wiped out from Syria and this "Islamic empire" had been completely destroyed.

IS once controlled more than 30% of Iraq and large areas in Syria but gradually weakened and suffered a series of defeats on the battlefield. With the support of US forces, the Iraqi army declared that it had completely expelled the rebels from the country in December 2017.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), with the core being Kurdish militias backed by the US, on March 11 launched an attack on the village of Baghouz, the last stronghold of IS militants in eastern Syria, with fire support from the US air force.