Iraqi fighters are losing ground to the Islamic State in Baiji amid reports that the city could fall into terrorist control.
Capt. Jeff Davis, Pentagon spokesman, said much of the progress Iraqi Security Fighters had recently made in the city has been reversed, while fighting also continued in the oil refinery to the north of the city.
“A lot of the gains they’ve made were lost,” Davis told reporters Wednesday.
The city has been a dynamic environment with neither side gaining decisive control for months.
Baiji would not be the first key city Iraqi fighters lost to the Islamic State. Mosul fell into terrorist control in June 2014 and Ramadi fell in May.
Both cities remain in Islamic State control, but Iraqi fighters have been attempting to retake Ramadi for weeks.
