Islamic State militants have been steadily battering Iraqi government forces. Well-armed and resourceful, ISIL’s bombs are found buried in villages, and roadside explosive traps are common. Yet ISIL’s latest victories have further reconfirmed that their support extends beyond the battlefield. <br /><br /> After Islamic State fighters captured Ramadi, in central Iraq, about 110 kilometres west of Baghdad, video coming out purports to show celebrations in Mosul.<br /><br /> The scale of the militants’ control and spread in parts of Syria and Iraq is significant. ISIL forces have overrun a series of towns and cities and they are consolidating. The Iraqi government is understood to control only pockets of territory.<br /><br /> The IS advance has exposed dire shortcomings in Iraq’s army and the limited value of US-led coalition air strikes. Despite claims that an ISIL leader was recently killed in Syria, President Obama was at a loss to explain the fall of Palmyra. <br /><br /> However, Washington continues to insist that its st
