(VOVworld) – The Islamic State group has lost an estimated 40 percent of the territory it once held in Iraq and 20 percent in Syria, the U.S.-led coalition fighting the group said Tuesday.

Iraqi security forces gathered in Ramadi city after it was liberated from IS on December 29 (Photo: AFP)

Counter-offensives by Iraqi and Kurdish armed forces, supported by the U.S.-led coalition, and by Iran-backed Shiite militias have forced IS out of several cities — including Tikrit, north of Baghdad, and Ramadi, to the west last month. In Syria, IS is fighting the army of President Bashar Assad and other rebel groups opposed to his rule. It is facing air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition and by Russia which has sent warplanes to support Syria.