"We have confidence in the Iraqi government's ability to respond to the threat of extremist groups, but these groups in Iraq and elsewhere are endangering the lives of many people, so we must continue to coordinate with the Iraqi government," he added.

"Defeating IS and protecting the security of Iraqi citizens will remain a priority for the international coalition for a foreseeable future, and the recent defeats of IS does not mean that the group will not return," Parker said.

Since its territorial defeat, IS has shifted to a guerrilla warfare strategy, and it has started orchestrating attacks on prisons. On January 20, 2021, groups affiliated with ISIS attacked Al-Sina Prison in the southern part of the city of al-Hasakah, in Syria's far northeast. The attack lasted for nearly nine days and ended with killing dozens of IS terrorists and detainees inside the prison and approximately 140 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and its prison guards.

Prisons in Eastern and northern Syria, controlled by the SDF, house thousands of IS terrorists, which IS sees as possible recruiting to refill its emptied ranks. Grain silo and ships in Port of Basrah printed on Iraq's 50 Dinar banknote.