The terrorist group in the Middle East, most commonly referred to as ISIS, has been rapidly expanding and fortifying its existence since it declared itself an Islamic State in June 2014. For a while, there appeared to be no end in sight for the organization’s rise to power, but it seems they’re beginning to crack.

The Syrian and United States armed forces have been working against ISIS for the better part of the last twelve months. Since the opposition began, other nations have joined the fight, and ISIS is finally showing signs that the infrastructure is cracking under the pressure.

Last month Kurdish forces gave ISIS militants their worst loss yet when they drove them out of the town of Kobani in northern Syria. After the victory in Kobani, Kurdish forces joined the Syrian rebels and reclaimed over 200 villages in the surrounding area. ISIS suffered 1,000 militant casualties – it’s most yet since the spur of its most recent rampage.

This defeat for ISIS has disrupted supply lines between its westernmost territories and its core stronghold in eastern Syria. Not only is ISIS struggling to keep itself running across its occupied domain, but the extremist is reported to be making strategic withdrawals from the town of al-Bab, one of its strongholds in the west. The residents there have noticed a thinner military presence.

The stress of the battle in Kobani caused different ethnic groups within ISIS to turn on each other. Bari Abdellatif, an al-Bab resident who has since fled to Turkey, said that the internal dissension resulted in the deaths of at least two senior figures. An activist group out of Raqqa, Syria, says that several miltants have been killed after accusations of treachery and spying.

While this shift cannot yet be called a turning point, it is a step in the right direction in the world’s quest for peace against ISIS.