Vice: Season 5, Episode 13

5 - 13: Taking Back Iraq & Lost Generation

Taking Back Iraq

The city of Mosul has been central in the war to defeat Islamic State. In 2014, Iraqi troops surrendered Iraq's second largest city to Islamic State, who in turn declared an Islamic caliphate and used the city as a base for operations in the region. In October 2016, a U.S. supported coalition of Iraqi and Kurdish troops announced a long-awaited offensive to retake the city. VICE embedded with Iraqi forces on the road to Mosul as they began their assault on Islamic State's last stronghold in Iraq.

Lost Generation

Iraq has one of the youngest populations of any country in the world. The majority of people living there today have grown up in the shadow of the 2003 invasion, knowing nothing but war and chaos. With Islamic State seemingly on the verge of defeat in the country, the question of what happens next is far from certain. VICE travels to Iraq to see what the future looks like through the eyes of the youth.