Over a dozen Coalition partners have collectively contributed over $50 million to the Funding Facility for Iraq Stabilisation. The retaking of Tikrit in April 2015 and the successful return of 90% of its residents to date provided valuable lessons that will guide stabilisation efforts in newly liberated areas. The US with the Coalition is working with the Iraqi government, and has now retrained more than 1,000 Iraqi police officers to provide security in liberated areas.
The United States also continues to be the largest single-country donor of humanitarian aid to the Syrian people, providing more than $5.1 billion to date. In Syria, the US government has provided more than $4.5 billion to date and USAID is providing emergency assistance to 5 million Syrians every month, including 4 million people inside Syria. USAID is also providing food assistance to Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries. In Iraq, the US government has provided more than $603 million in life-saving humanitarian assistance for the Iraqi people including critically needed relief items, food, shelter, clean water, and medical services. The United States continues to lead the international diplomatic effort to reach a negotiated political transition that removes Bashar al-Asad from power and ultimately leads to an inclusive government that is responsive to the needs of all Syrians. The Asad regime’s continued brutality against the Syrian people drives the influx of foreign fighters who join extremists’ ranks, including Daesh. The Asad regime’s purchase of oil from Daesh and its unwillingness to target extremists have helped Daesh and other terrorist groups to flourish.