Timeline of the Islamic State (2014)
In early June, following its large-scale offensives in Iraq, ISIS was reported to have seized control of most of Mosul, the city with the second highest population in Iraq, a large part of the surrounding Nineveh province, and the city of Fallujah. ISIS also took control of Tikrit, the administrative center of the Salah ad Din Governorate, with the ultimate goal of capturing Baghdad, the capital city of Iraq. ISIS was believed to have only 2,000–3,000 fighters up until the Mosul campaign, but during that campaign, it became clear that there were far more fighters than was previously thought.