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

Live Blog: Tracking Islamic State

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).

15:57 15.12.2015

AFP has this update on the new Saudi-led anti-terror coalition.

16:11 15.12.2015

The United States and its allies targeted IS militants with a fresh round of 14 air strikes in Syria and Iraq on Monday, the U.S. military has said in a statement.

16:12 15.12.2015

16:23 15.12.2015

Jordan's government spokesman Mohammad Momani has said that Jordan is always ready to join any endeavor aimed at countering terrorism, Jordan's Petra News Agency reports.

He told the Jordan News Agency (Petra) that the Kingdom deems the war on terrorism as "our war and the Muslims war" against terrorists who carry out "ugly and brutal" acts in the name of religion, however, Islam, the religion of peace and tolerance, abhors them.

Terrorism is the real and direct threat to stability in the region and the world, he added.

16:26 15.12.2015

Counterterrorism analyst Patrick Skinner comments on the emerging reports that Los Angeles schools have been ordered shut due to a "credible" terror threat.

16:28 15.12.2015

A Lebanese minister has insisted that his country is not part of a newly announced Saudi-led counterterror alliance, contradicting Riyadh’s own statement on its formation, NOW Media reports.

“Lebanon is not a participant in the Islamic coalition against terrorism,” Labor Minister Sejaan Azzi told MTV in an interview today.

16:33 15.12.2015

Russia's General Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov and the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford have discussed cooperation in Syria between Russia and the U.S.-led coalition against IS, RIA Novosti is reporting.

The telephone call was initiated by the United States, according to RIA.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that Gerasimov and Dunford "exchanged views on the situation in Syria and the practical aspects of cooperation between the Russian air force and the coalition's aircraft, in the war against IS."

16:35 15.12.2015

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has told Russia's President Putin that the United States is "grateful to Russia for its cooperation," RIA is reporting.

Kerry is meeting Putin in Moscow following earlier discussions on Syria with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

16:38 15.12.2015

This tweet from the BBC's Steve Rosenberg sums up the current situation regarding news of U.S. Secretary of State Kerry's talks with his Russian counterpart Lavrov today on Syria.

RIA Novosti is suggesting that Kerry's meeting with Putin has started.

16:42 15.12.2015

U.S. Secretary of State Kerry has started his meeting with Putin.

Putin told him, "You know, we are searching together for resolutions to the most complex crises."

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