On the dawn of July 13, the Iraqi Army, backed by the Shiite and Sunni pro-government militias, launched an assault on several fronts in Anbar, including on Ramadi.
According to military officials said that there may have been number of Shiite militia fighters may have been inside the stadium at the time of its destruction, but they did not offer casualty figures.
[48] On July 29, 12 Iraqi soldiers were killed when ISIL suicide attackers rammed 2 explosive-laden Humvees into forces deployed outside the university's compound.
[49] On August 11, a senior official with the US-led Coalition said that Iraqi forces had surrounded the city and were preparing for a final assault to retake it.
[51] On August 25, Iraqi forces repelled an ISIL suicide attack west of Ramadi by destroying three booby-trapped vehicles and killing everyone inside them.
[53] On September 10, an airstrike by the US-led coalition destroyed an ISIL operating base and staging area in a stadium near Ramadi.
[54] On September 15, it was reported that a force of 160 US troops had arrived at Habbaniyah air base and were expected to help the Iraqi army retake Ramadi.
The unconfirmed reports also claimed that USA agreed to take part in ground combat against ISIL if the Popular Front forces withdrew from Anbar.
However, these reports were dismissed by an Iraqi army spokesman who said that the US troops at the air base were there to simply provide military advice and coordinate raids against ISIL targets.
[61][62] Further Iraqi military reinforcements including artillery batteries and tanks arrived in the nearby town of Khaldiyah on November 10, in preparation for another assault on Ramadi.
[71] On December 27, the Iraqi Army captured the government complex, after which they declared victory in Ramadi,[73] and claimed to be in full control of the city center.
[5] Iraqi forces began moving eastward to Khalidiya Island, after clearing ISIL-held neighborhoods near the area.
[87] The 2015–2016 Battle of Ramadi was the first time since the Fall of Mosul in which the Iraqi Army played the primary role in combating ISIL.
[90] This led to concerns that an estimated 30,000 civilians trapped in Fallujah would starve, due to the lack of airdropped supplies into the city.
[91] On February 4, after Ramadi city was recaptured from ISIL, offensive operations shifted further eastward to the Khalidiya Island area.
[105] From February 15 to 19, the Iraqi Army launched an offensive into the town of Al-Karmah, to the northeast of Fallujah, killing dozens of ISIL militants.
ISIL was reported to have withdrawn into Fallujah city, after local Sunnis burned the Al-Hisbah headquarters and clashes spread.
[108] On February 21, the Iraqi Army began shelling ISIL positions on the outskirts of Fallujah, in support of the Sunni tribal fighters.
[115] On February 27, the Iraqi Government reported that 600 ISIL fighters had managed to flee Fallujah to nearby areas,[116] and to the city of Mosul.
[127] On February 28, the Iraqi government warned the civilians in Kabisa and the Hīt District to leave within 48 hours, to avoid an imminent offensive to recapture those areas.
[129] On the same day, U.S.-led Coalition forces conducted several airstrikes within Hīt, killing a number of ISIL leaders and militants, which Iraqi officials confirmed.
[132] On the same day, Iraqi forces paused offensive operations, to give the remaining civilians in the district time to flee.
[135] The offensive was reported to have been delayed earlier, because hundreds of roadside bombs littering the surrounding area slowed progress for days.
Furthermore, it was reported that a significant number of troops had been pulled out of Al Anbar Governorate earlier to protect protesters in Baghdad, which also resulted in delays.
[7][140][141][142] On March 13, a senior Iraqi general reported that ISIL has fully withdrawn from the city of Ar-Rutbah to Al-Qa'im, after they began leaving the night before.
It was also reported that ISIL had abandoned the town of Kabisa as well, and they had also withdrawn from Hīt to some degree, with Iraqi warplanes bombing the retreating militants.
[154] On the first day of the offensive 11 further villages and districts near Fallujah were recaptured, which forced ISIL fighters to retreat to the interior of the strategically important city.
[161] According to Qasm Araji, a member of the defense committee, the advancing forces are continuously gaining ground and "nearing Fallujah's Eastern gate.
[35] Iraqi Army along with the local tribes launched a new offensive on 5 January 2017 to capture the remaining areas under ISIL control in Anbar with the main targets being the towns of Aanah, Rawa and Al-Qaim.