ISIS Has Lost Nearly 60% Of Its Territory

According to an analysis by the RAND corporation, ISIS is firmly on the defensive. The group is on a path to collapse as a self-proclaimed state with the amount of territory it controls in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria, Libya and Nigeria shrinking dramatically. At the height of its power back in late 2014, ISIS controlled over 100,000 km2 of territory and as a result of the U.S.-led campaign against it, that fell to 45,377 km2 by early 2017, a 57 percent decline.

The amount of people living under ISIS control has also fallen signficantly. In 2014, 11 million people were controlled by the group and earlier this year, that had plummeted 73 percent to an estimated 2.5 million. Despite those massive setbacks, the group has still proven a potent threat, managing to plan and conduct devastating terrorist attacks around the world.