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September, and at least 35 before and during the Shia mourning month of
Muharram in November. Thousands of Syrians flee to neighboring countries,
including Iraq, to escape the civil war in that country.
2013:
The insurgency in Iraq intensifies, and by June experts agree that the situation
has become a civil war. The United Nations estimates that 7,157 civilians were
killed during 2013, a significant increase over the 2012 figure of 3,238.
2014:
Islamist fighters infiltrate Fallujah and Ramadi after months of mounting vio-
lence in mainly-Sunni Anbar province. Government forces recapture Ramadi but
face entrenched rebels in Fallujah. In June, the Islamic State of Iraq and the
Levant (ISIL) seizes Mosul and other key towns. Kurdish forces assist the Iraqi
military in repelling attacks, with assistance from Iran and the United States.
2015:
In January, terrorist bombings in Baghdad and Kirkuk, carried out by ISIL gueril-
las, kill dozens of people. A U.S.-led military coalition continues to launch
airstrikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in support of Iraqi
and Kurdish effords to recapture Mosul.
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