On 25 November , ISIL received reinforcements from Iraq , among them explosive experts and defected Iraqi Army personnel . On the next day , ISIL launched a counter-attack , retaking parts of Qaltah village and a nearby water pump station , while the SDF managed to advance in the village 's vicinity . Boubaker Al-Hakim , an ISIL commander who was linked to the Charlie Hebdo shooting , was reported to have been killed in an American airstrike in Raqqa on 26 November . Iraqi military however later stated in April 2017 that he might still be alive
Charlie Hebdo shooting
Charlie Hebdo shooting
Raqqa campaign (2016–2017)