Plaque from 1st Brigade Protection of Sulaimany, Kurdish Security Forces, thanking 2nd Mercian Battle Group for their assistance, 2017 (c)

Wooden plaque, manufacturer unknown, 2017 (c).

By early 2019, the Islamic State 'caliphate' in Iraq and Syria had been dismantled by US and British-backed forces. The British role in the campaign (2015-2019) included air-strikes and humanitarian aid. The Army also provided equipment and helped train Kurdish and Iraqi troops in weapons maintenance, counter-Improvised Explosive Device (IED) methods, and medical, infantry and engineering skills.