Oct. 17, 2016
Peter Bergen wrote for CNN about what will happen in Iraq after ISIS loses Mosul:
So it begins: The long-envisioned assault on Mosul, the hugely symbolic Iraqi city where Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared ISIS' self-styled "caliphate" more than two years ago.
Not only is Mosul Iraq's second largest city, it is also a key to ISIS' claim to have installed for the first time since the collapse of the Ottoman empire a genuine caliphate with millions of subjects and territory that once encompassed lands the size of the United Kingdom.
There is little doubt that ISIS will lose Mosul and likely before the next US president takes office. On Monday, the commander of the anti-ISIS coalition, US Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend, released a statement saying the Mosul operation "will likely continue for weeks, possibly longer."