12 Things ISIS Fighters Abandoned Before They Fled
Tanks, blindfolds, niqabs and mass graves.
With its self-proclaimed caliphate in decline, ISIS fighters are fleeing villages and towns in Syria and Iraq following a ground offensive that began last fall. Reuters photographers have been documenting these former ISIS strongholds as the group continues to lose territory. Here are some of the things they found abandoned by the fighters.
1. A tank

In Qaraqosh, east of Mosul. Nov. 8, 2016.
2. A safe

Inside a cash collection center in Turkman Bareh village, in northern Aleppo. Oct. 7, 2016.
3. A sword

An Iraqi soldier who found the sword in Intisar district in Mosul said the weapon was similar to the ones used by ISIS for beheadings. Nov. 6, 2016.
4. Prisoners' blankets

Clothes, blankets and sealed windows at a location used as women's prison in Mosul. Jan. 23, 2017.
5. Satellite dishes

Damaged dishes inside a mosque in Turkman Bareh village.
6. Bags of Niqabs

Used by ISIS religious police, in Manbij, Aleppo. Aug. 16, 2016.
7. Blindfolds

A prison in Manbij, Aleppo. Aug. 17, 2016.
8. Containers for making explosives

Manbij, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, Aug. 17, 2016.
9. A mass grave

In Fallujah, Iraq. Sept. 4, 2016.
10. Burned cages

ISIS has used such cages to burn their captives alive. In Fallujah, Iraq. June 27, 2016.
11. A sofa

Hammam al-Ali, Mosul. Nov. 7, 2016.
12. Homemade mortars

Gwer, northern Iraq. Aug. 31, 2016.