2017 Hawija offensive

Battle context

The Hawija offensive was part of the broader Iraqi campaign to dismantle the territorial hold of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant across northern Iraq during the final phase of the 2014–2017 civil war. With a force of 42,000 Iraqi personnel committed against an estimated 2,000 ISIL fighters in and around Hawija, the operation reflected the significant asymmetry of strength Iraqi forces had developed by late 2017. ISIL suffered approximately 1,000 casualties in the engagement, representing a substantial attrition of its remaining garrison. The recapture of Hawija and its surrounding areas removed one of the last significant ISIL-held pockets in northern Iraq, contributing to the collapse of the group's territorial presence in the country by the end of 2017.