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The U.S.-led coalition and its allies have wrestled almost a third of territory from the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) because of changes implemented by President Trump and his administration, a senior U.S. official said on Friday.

Brett McGurk, the special presidential envoy for the global coalition to defeat ISIS, in a briefing with reporters said that Trumps strategy in the battle against the jihadist group in Iraq and Syria had dramatically accelerated progress in the campaign.

Nearly 30 percent of all the territory that has been retaken from ISISabout 20,000 square kilometershas actually happened in the last six months, he said.

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Iraqi forces battling ISIS in northern Iraq last month declared victory in the northern city of Mosul after a nine-month slog in the intense and right urban landscape of Iraqs second city. Now, a Kurdish-Arab coalition known as the Syrian Democratic Forces has liberated almost half of the eastern Syrian city of Raqqa, the stronghold that acted as the groups de facto capital for more than three years and served as the site of the filmed executions of U.S. journalists James Foley and Stephen Sotloff.

As you know, the campaign against Mosul is now finished and in Raqqa, which Ill talk to in more detail, about 45 percent of Raqqa is now cleared, he continued. This is due to some key changes that were put in place very early onthree changesinitiatives from President Trump.

Listing them, the envoy said that the key factors were the Trump administrations delegation of key decision-making to battlefield commanders, the tactic of annihilation in which the ground forces surround the group in its stronghold so foreign fighters cannot escape, and drumming up support for burden-sharing among 73 members69 countries and four international organizationsof the broad anti-ISIS coalition.

The campaign under Trump has witnessed the near fall of ISISs territorial hold. The Obama administration laid the groundwork for both campaigns in Mosul and Raqqa but McGurks assessment is that his successors strategy is pushing the battle across the line.

A picture taken on July 9 shows smoke billowing following an airstrike by the U.S.-led international coalition forces targeting the Islamic State (ISIS) group in Mosul, Iraq. Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty

There is some way to go, however, with ISIS moving much of its assets to the Euphrates River Valley in eastern Syria, according to U.S. intelligence, and the borderlands that split Iraq and Syria. The group remains in control ofthe majorityof Deir Ezzor province, as well asthe Syrian cities of Deir Ezzor and Mayadin. Thousands of the groups fighters and, some of its key leaders like self-declared caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, are believed to be alive and active in the region.

But, despite the success under Trump, rights groups have criticized the new strategy as having a deadlier impact on civilian life in ISIS-held territory. They have accused the coalition of using munitions loaded with white phosphorus in densely-populated areas and have criticized its strikes in areas where civilians are prominent.

One case in particular was a March 17 strike in western Mosul that killed more than 100 civilians. The coalition investigated the incident and concluded that ISIS had placed booby traps in the building that maximized the damage on impact.

In June, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based monitoring group, said that U.S.-led coalition strikes had killed 472 civilians within a month in two Syrian provinces. It said the total was the highest for a single month since the bombing campaign began in 2014. The coalition does not specify which of its members air forces conduct the strikes.

In spite of the criticism, McGurk reiterated the coalition defense that ISIS is using civilians as human shields and endangering their lives in a bid to deter the coalition and hold on to their key assets for a longer period of time.

Whats really happening in Raqqasimilar to what we saw in Mosul but on a smaller scalethe ISIS fighters on the ground are using these civilians as their own shields, as their own hostages, he said.

They are using snipers to kill civilians who are trying to escape. Theyre trying to put suicide bombers in columns of displaced people as they try to get outthe similar tactics weve seen from this barbaric terrorist organization.

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Trump's War On ISIS 'Dramatically Accelerated' Coalition Gains in Iraq And Syria - Newsweek

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region Vian Amer Noori Sulaimani, a Kurdish woman who won the title of Miss Iraq in March has been stripped of her title due to misinformation given during her registration process.

Sulaimani, who is originally from the Kurdish city of Sulaimani but resides in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, was stripped of her title and all of her duties for claiming to be single, when in fact she had previously been married per a press release from Miss Iraqs official Facebook pageon Thursday.

While Ms. Sulaimani told us during the registration that she was engaged in a botched break, she was in fact, connected to a marriage and is now separated or divorced, the press release stated.

The beauty queen was in violation of article number 4 of the rules and regulations to be eligible for the pageant which states Participant must never be married in any form, whether religious or civil and have not given birth to a child.

As an organization aimed at promoting an international level of beauty and elegance, we are saddened by the unfortunate events and pledge to organize what is best next year and with regard to the title of this year will remain abstract until the selection of an appropriate contestant representing Iraq in international competitions for 2017, the statement read.

The runner up usually takes the place of the original winning contestant in such events. This should lead to 18-year-old Masty Hama Adel from Halabja being named Miss Iraq 2017 and taking on Sulaimanis duties. If so, she could possibly run in future international competitions such as Miss Universe in the UK or the US.

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Kurdish Miss Iraq Vian Sulaimani stripped of title - Rudaw

Former Blackwater Worldwide security guard Nick Slatter, (2nd from left) and Donald Ball, (3rd from left) arrive with their lawyers at the U.S. District Court before surrendering to authorities in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Dec. 8, 2008. Chris Detrick / Reuters

In deciding to give Slatten a retrial, the

Slatten was the only one who faced a murder charge because prosecutors alleged that he was the first to fire shots at the Iraqi civilians.

They also ruled that the 30-year sentences for Slough, Liberty and Heard violated "the Eighth Amendment prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment."

Related:

The four men were part of a Blackwater security team that carried the code name Raven 23. Their orders were to secure the route for a diplomatic convoy that was set to travel through western Baghdad in September 2007. When a car bomb exploded in downtown Baghdad, the team set up a protective blockade in the traffic circle of Nisur Square and shot 31 innocent Iraqis in an ensuing firefight, the appeals court said.

Fourteen of the Iraqis, including women and children, died.

Prosecutors said that Slatten, who had taken up a concealed position inside the convoys command vehicle with his sniper rifle, initiated the entire incident when he fired the first shots without justifications.

There were no witnesses during the 2014 trial who said that they saw the guards come under threat and no evidence of a two-sided firefight was ever produced.

Blackwater, which became well-known after the 2007 shooting, was renamed Xe Services in 2009 and Academi in 2011.

NBC News could not immediately reach the four mens lawyers for comment.

Erik Prince, the founder and former CEO of Blackwater, is the brother of Education Secretary Betsy Devos.

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Ex-Blackwater Guard's Conviction in Iraq Massacre Overturned, Appeals Court Rules - NBCNews.com

Three years ago this week, disturbing images of women and children fleeing the Islamic State in northern Iraq shocked the world. During the siege of Mt. Sinjar, reports emerged of ISIS militants ruthlessly massacring Yazidi men and kidnapping and enslaving Yazidi women and children. Girls were separated by eye color and sold to ISIS fighters based on their preference. Thousands were trapped on the mountain, desperate for food, water and rescue.

Similarly, Iraqs ancient Christian community was in the crosshairs as ISIS attempted to establish a caliphate. Days after the Sinjar massacre, ISIS seized Qaraqosh, Iraqs largest Christian city with a population of 50,000. Fleeing on foot, many could not escape being killed, kidnapped, or forced to convert. Churches and other holy sites that had stood for centuries were bombed, defaced or destroyed, or turned into torture chambers and weapons storehouses. The full measure of human suffering exacted against these innocent people remains incalculable.

This bloodthirsty campaign targeting ethnic and religious minorities was clearly genocidea term I do not use lightly. At the time, I and many others urged the Obama Administration to officially recognize the Islamic States atrocities for what they were, and then-Secretary of State John Kerry finally did, on March 17, 2016. His declaration that ISIS is responsible for genocide against Christians, Yezidis and other religious minorities was only the second time in history that a U.S. secretary of state made a genocide determinationthe first being Darfur. Both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives unanimously passed resolutions denouncing this genocide.

Unfortunately, it is unclear whether the current administration maintains this determination. It is important for Secretary Tillerson to publicly address this issue and clarify the administrations stance, which my colleagues and I have asked him to do. Even then, words without action will not change the reality on the ground. The Trump Administration must take decisive steps to counter the gravity of the situation: ISIS is seeking to erase thousands of years of history and the people who represent it.

The Bibles Old Testament is full of references to the ancient cities and towns that comprise modern-day Iraq. Abraham hailed from Ur in southern Iraq. Isaacs wife Rebekah was from northwest Iraq. The twelve sons of Jacob were all born in Iraq, and the spiritual revival depicted in the book of Jonah occurred in the city of Nineveh, now known as Mosul. Many of the Christians there still speak Aramaic, the language of Jesus, and trace their faith back to the Apostle Thomas. Sadly, their population in Iraq has quickly dwindled from 1.4 million a generation ago to less than 200,000 today.

If the United States fails to take meaningful steps to support these communities, including ensuring their access to humanitarian assistance and the resources they need to rebuild, even more of them will be forced to abandon their ancient homeland. This would be a tragedy on a multitude of levels, and a deathblow to the vision of a diverse, pluralistic, Iraq that respects religious freedom. The State Department has an obligation to ensure vulnerable and persecuted religious minorities, including victims of genocide receive humanitarian aid, as Congress directed in the most recent appropriations legislation.

I will continue to press for oversight and accountability in this area, but the Executive Branch must prioritize the issue, rather than allow the inertia of the State Department bureaucracy to dictate the path forward. President Trump should quickly end the exclusion of genocide-targeted minorities from U.S. humanitarian and reconstruction aid. A presidential directive would provide much-needed guidance to State Department and USAID personnel. I have no doubt that once Governor Sam Brownback is confirmed as ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, he will be a stalwart advocate on behalf of these beleaguered religious communities.

Additionally, Secretary Tillerson should move swiftly to appoint a special coordinator based in northern Iraq who can directly oversee U.S. assistance and collaborate closely with local partners and civil society groups. The U.S. should not cede this important work to the United Nations Development Fund. Combining these efforts with diplomatic engagement with Iraqs central government and the Kurdistan Regional Government, we can help guarantee the political and economic rights of these beleaguered communities, as well their return and protection.

President Obamas misguided foreign policy did real damage to Iraqs minorities, but these ancient communities could disappear completely on President Trumps watch if his administration fails to help them.

Marco Rubio has been serving as U.S. Senator from Florida since 2011.

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The US Must Act On The Genocide Of Iraq's Christians - The Daily Caller

A mass grave, containing the bodies of around 40 men, was found by the Iraq's army in the western Iraqi city of Ramadi. The army believes that the men were executed by Daesh.

Photo by: AFP Archive

Members of Iraq's elite counterterrorism service secure the Hoz neighbourhood in central Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's Anbar province on December 27, 2015.

Iraqi troops have found a mass grave in the western city of Ramadi containing the bodies of 40 men believed to have been executed by Daesh, officials said on Friday.

It is the latest of dozens of such grisly finds made by Iraqi forces since they drove the extremists out of the swathes of northern and western Iraq that they had occupied in 2014.

Ammar Nuri al Dulaimi, an official from a Martyrs Committee for Anbar province, said the bodies had bullet wounds to the head, suggesting they were executed by Daesh.

An army colonel, who asked not to be named, said troops had uncovered the mass grave during a sweep of the Al Tach neighbourhood in the south of Ramadi, which is the capital of the Al Anbargovernate.

The army retook the city in December 2015.

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Mass grave discovered in former Daesh-held city in Iraq - TRT World