Thread by @charliewinter

1. In other news, the battle rages on against #IS's last pocket of territory in #Syria. Looks like there’s about a square kilometre left. This pic (via @NotWoofers) was reportedly taken from inside it today.

2. Although #IS has been pretty vocal about what’s happening elsewhere (think #Nigeria/#Yemen/#Iraq), there's not been a peep from it about #Baghuz since Tuesday.

Usually in this context (think #Raqqa, #Mosul and #Hajin), radio silence is a sign that it has given up.

3. That being said, #IS is set to publish its newspaper tonight. Let’s see what it has in store.

4. So, #IS published its newspaper last night.

#Baghuz is mentioned, but only very briefly (highlighted in green), and the focus is on enemy casualties caused, not territory lost.

It's #Mosul all over again.

4a. Instead of #Baghuz, the bulletin focuses on #IS's activities in #Nigeria, #Iraq, #Egypt, #Yemen and #Afghanistan.

There is no mention *whatsoever* of the fact that what remains of #IS's proto-state in #Syria is now confined to a tiny patch of land.

4b. It's obvious what's going on: #IS is trying to show that #Baghuz doesn't matter to it.

Its operations - and, hence, its caliphate - are global, so, the line is, what happens to it in this patch of #Syria is unimportant.