A woman rests near rubble in the Syrian town of Darat Izza in Aleppo Province on February 28.

Live Blog: Tracking Islamic State

February 29, 2016 04:29 CET

Follow all of the latest developments as they happen.

Latest News For February 29

-- The United States Army's elite Delta Force is on the verge of beginning operations to target, capture or kill top IS operatives in Iraq, after several weeks of covert preparation, an administration official with direct knowledge of the force's activities told CNN.

-- Syrian government forces have regained control of a road used by the army to access Aleppo, after making advances against Islamic State fighters, a monitoring group and state television reported.

-- Authorities in Iraq say the death toll from a double bombing at a market in Baghdad’s Shi’ite neighborhood of Sadr City rose to 73 on February 29 after several critically wounded victims died overnight.

-- Tajik media are reporting that a woman known to be the second wife of Gulmurod Halimov, the fugitive Tajik colonel who defected to the IS group, has left for Syria along with the couple's four young children.

-- The UN is poised to begin delivering aid to people living in besieged areas of Syria, making use of a truce brokered by the United States and Russia. The first deliveries are planned for Feb. 29, with aid due to reach about 150,000 Syrians in besieged areas over the next five days.

-- A truce negotiated between Syrian rebels and the government has caused a dramatic decrease in airstrikes around rebel-held territory, but there were few celebrations, with many residents suspecting a trick, CNN report.

* NOTE: Live blog posts are time-stamped according to Central European Time (CET).

16:02 12.1.2016

The Istanbul suicide bomber "recently entered Turkey from Syria," Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus has said.

15:59 12.1.2016

More from Turkish prime minister Davutoglu ("Daesh" is an Arabic acronym for the IS group).

15:58 12.1.2016

More from Turkish prime minister Davutoglu, via Daily Sabah.

15:56 12.1.2016

Turkey's Prime Minister Davutoglu has confirmed that the Istanbul suicide bomber was a foreign IS militant, tweets Reuters' Ece Toksabay.

There have been various reports from Turkey about the identity of the bomber, with some saying he was Syrian and others that he was Saudi-born.

15:49 12.1.2016

"Give us anything, biscuits, bread, anything" -- a first-hand account from an eyewitness with the UN convoy that entered the Syrian town of Madaya yesterday.

15:46 12.1.2016

Turkey's Dogan news agency is reporting that the Istanbul suicide bomber was a Saudi Arabian named Nabil Fadli, born 1988.

15:37 12.1.2016

The confusion over the nationality of the Istanbul suicide bomber is ongoing.

15:30 12.1.2016

From our news desk:

Bosnia Holds Four For Planning To Join IS Group

Authorities in Bosnia-Herzegovina say they have detained four people on suspicion of planning to join the Islamic State (IS) group.

Prosecutors said one of them, 22-year-old Senad Kostac, was detained in Turkey while trying to reach Syria and handed over to Bosnian authorities.

The other three, aged 26, 27 and 55, were arrested near the northwestern town of Velika Kladusa.

Several hand grenades, land mines, a machine gun, ammunition, and a flag of the IS group were seized during a police raid.

The operation followed similar raids in the Sarajevo area in December, when 11 people were arrested on suspicion of having links with the IS group. Eight of them were remanded in custody.

Bosnia hardened its legislation last year, allowing sentences of up to 20 years in jail for militants and their recruiters.

15:28 12.1.2016

There is confusion over the identity of the suicide bomber reportedly responsible for the blast this morning in Istanbul.

Turkish President Erdogan said earlier that the bomber was thought to be a 28-year-old Syrian, but local agencies are reporting that the bomber was born in Saudi Arabia.

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Live Blog: Tracking Islamic State