ISIS had a secret weapon in Ramadi assault: a sandstorm

ISIS's capture of Ramadi is bad news, aided by a sandstorm
(Image credit: BBC/YouTube)

The capture of Ramadi, the capital of Iraq's Anbar province, by Islamic State militants is a setback for Iraq, and for the Obama administration's strategy of relying on air power, not ground troops, to support Baghdad's fight against the ISIS insurgency. But American fighter jets can't launch airstrikes during a sandstorm — something "the Islamic State fighters evidently anticipated," The New York Times reports.

Starting the offensive against Iraqi security forces during a sandstorm allowed ISIS militants to fight their way far enough into Ramadi that by the time the storm passed, U.S. jets couldn't hit ISIS targets without also killing Iraqi troops and civilians. "The dust storm at the very least neutralized capabilities that could have been decisive," one former senior military official tells The New York Times. Below, BBC News puts the fall of Ramadi in a broader context. —Peter Weber

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Peter Weber

Peter Weber is a senior editor at TheWeek.com, and has handled the editorial night shift since the website launched in 2008. A graduate of Northwestern University, Peter has worked at Facts on File and The New York Times Magazine. He speaks Spanish and Italian and plays bass and rhythm cello in an Austin rock band. Follow him on Twitter.