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Iraq

Iraqi Forces Launch Operation against Militants near Fallujah

2014-09-22

[ABNA.IR] Iraqi government forces launched an operation Sunday to rescue an army battalion which has come under repeated attack by ISIL faceless myrmidons near the western city of Fallujah, ... the City of Mosques, which might have somthing to do with why it's not called Center of Prosperity or a really nice place to raise your kids... military sources said. The assault involving army, police, counter-terrorism units and volunteers is aimed at pushing back ISIL gunnies who have been besieging an army base for more than a week. "Forces from the interior and defense ministries, counter-terrorism forces and volunteers are advancing to clear the Al-Sijr area," Iraqi military front man Qassem Atta told AFP. The operation is backed by US air support, he said, without elaborating. There was no immediate confirmation from the Pentagon of any US air strikes in the area, which is barely 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of the capital Baghdad. Atta said the base was located north of Fallujah between the krazed killer-held villages of Saqlawiyah and Al-Sijr. "This operation is aimed at thwarting attempts by the jihadists to seize the battalion headquarters," an army officer involved in the operation told AFP. "They have been trying for 10 days," he said.

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Iraq

U.S. Says 'Combat Advisers' May Battle IS in Iraq, Strikes to Target 'Safe Havens' in Syria

2014-09-17

[AnNahar] The United States plans to strike the Islamic State group in its Syrian strongholds and could send military advisers into combat alongside Iraqi troops, American commanders said Tuesday. Military leaders warned of a further escalation in their battle against the jihadists just as two branches of the rival Al-Qaeda group called for a united front against the war coalition Washington is building. U.S. warplanes have been targeting IS jihadists in northern Iraq since August 8, and in recent days hit the gunnies southwest of Baghdad for the first time, in a significant expansion of the campaign. Meanwhile, ...back at the wine tasting, Vince was about to start on his third quart... Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told US politicians that plans are being laid to hit targets in Syria, where the IS group is holding hostages and has a stronghold in the city of Raqa. "This plan includes targeted actions against ISIL safe havens in Syria, including its command and control, logistics capabilities, and infrastructure," Hagel told the Senate Armed Services Committee. But the U.S. military's top-ranking officer, General Martin Dempsey, told the same hearing the bombing would not match the huge raids that accompanied the start of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. "This will not look like 'shock and awe' because that is not how ISIL is organized, but it will be persistent and sustainable," Dempsey said, using the term Washington used for its 2003 bombardment. Dempsey also went further that any U.S. official has gone before in admitting that the military advisers that President Barack Obama I am the change that you seek... has dispatched to bolster Iraqi forces could get involved in combat. Obama's administration has insisted that his action against the IS hard boyz is not the start of another U.S. ground war in the Middle East, and that there will be no large-scale American invasion. But nearly 300 U.S. military advisers are already working with Iraqi government forces, 300 more are on their way and Dempsey refused to rule out their providing "close combat advising." "To be clear, if we reach the point where I believe our advisers should accompany Iraqi troops on attacks against specific ISIL targets, I will recommend that to the president," Dempsey said. Dempsey said the advisers are "very much in a combat advisory role" and that there is "no intention" at the moment for them to engage in combat: "I don't see it to be necessary right now." But he said if there were an "extraordinarily complex" operation planned by Iraqi forces -- such as a bid to recapture the rebel-held city of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... -- then advisers could head to the front. Dempsey said any use of U.S. troops in the field would be approved by Obama, explaining: "He told me to come back to him on a case-by-case basis." Obama has vowed to expand American efforts and U.S. diplomats are scrambling to put together an international coalition for a "relentless" campaign against the jihadists. The slow coming together of this alliance drew a fierce reaction from Al-Qaeda's branches in Yemen and in North Africa, who said jihadist forces must also unite against the common threat. In a joint statement, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) urged their "brothers" in Iraq and Syria to "stop killing each other and unite against the American campaign and its evil coalition that threatens us all." The Islamic State group began as a successor to Al-Qaeda's Iraqi branch, but has beat feet from the group's shadow and clashed with its surrogates in Syria, while claiming leadership of global jihad. The U.S. strikes against IS fighters in the Sadr al-Yusufiyah area, 25 kilometers (15 miles) from Baghdad, was the first in support of Iraqi forces near the capital. They bring the number of U.S. air strikes across Iraq to 162. The CIA estimates that the Islamic State organization may be able to field as many as 31,500 fighters -- many of them foreign volunteers. Iraqi security front man Lieutenant General Qassem Atta welcomed the expanded American action, saying the U.S. "carried out an important strike against an enemy target in Sadr al-Yusufiyah." Sadr al-Yusufiyah lies in the Euphrates Valley, between the bad boy stronghold of Fallujah and the key battleground of Jurf al-Sakhr, further south. It is one of the closest front lines to Baghdad. Western nations and 10 Arab countries, including regional powerhouses Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... and Egypt, have agreed to back the U.S.-led campaign, but not all will engage in military action.

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Iraq

Iraqi Forces Break Jihadist Siege of Amerli as West Airdrops Food Aid

2014-09-01

[AnNahar] Iraqi forces broke through to the jihadist-besieged Shiite town of Amerli Sunday, where thousands of people have been trapped for more than two months with dwindling food and water supplies. It is the biggest offensive success for the Iraqi government since Lions of Islam led by the Sunni Islamic State (IS) jihadist group overran large areas of five provinces in June, sweeping security forces aside. The breakthrough came as America carried out limited strikes outside north Iraq for the first time since its air campaign against Lions of Islam began more than three weeks ago, and aircraft from several countries dropped humanitarian aid to Amerli. The mainly Shiite Turkmen residents of the town in Salaheddin province were running desperately short of food and water, and were in danger both because of their Shiite faith, which jihadists consider heresy, and their resistance to the bad boys, which has drawn harsh retribution elsewhere. "Our forces entered Amerli and broke the siege," Iraqi security front man Lieutenant General Qassem Atta told Agence La Belle France-Presse, an account confirmed by a local official and a fighter from the town. "It is a very important success," Atta later said on state television ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe? , adding that there was still fighting in the area. The operation was launched on Saturday after days of preparations in which Iraqi security forces, Shiite snuffies and Kurdish fighters deployed for the assault and Iraqi aircraft carried out strikes against bad boys. But the government's reliance on the thousands of Shiite snuffies involved in the operation poses serious dangers for Iraq, risking entrenching groups with a history of brutal sectarian killings. The United States announced that it carried out three air strikes in the Amerli area, expanding its air campaign outside the far north for the first time, while Australian, British, French and U.S. aircraft dropped relief supplies for the town. "At the request of the government of Iraq, the United States military today airdropped humanitarian aid to the town of Amerli," said Pentagon front man Rear Admiral John Kirby. "The United States Air Force delivered this aid alongside aircraft from Australia, La Belle France and the United Kingdom, who also dropped much needed supplies." The aid drops came alongside "coordinated air strikes against nearby (IS) turbans in order to support this humanitarian assistance operation," he added. "The operations will be limited in their scope and duration as necessary to address this emerging humanitarian crisis and protect the civilians trapped in Amerli," Kirby said. U.S. Central Command said the U.S. supplies dropped included around 47,775 liters (10,500 gallons) of drinking water and 7,000 pre-packaged meals. Three U.S. air strikes destroyed five IS vehicles and a checkpoint. Western aid for Amerli was slow in coming, however, with the burden of flying supplies and launching strikes in the area largely falling to Iraq's fledgling air forces. "The U.S. military will continue to assess the effectiveness of these operations and work with the Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, as well as international partners including the government of Iraq, the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... , and non-government organizations to provide humanitarian assistance in Iraq as needed," Kirby said. The U.S. military also launched air strikes Saturday on IS forces near Iraq's largest dam, north of the bad boy-held northern city of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... , the Pentagon said. Kurdish forces retook the dam after briefly losing it to the jihadists earlier this month, securing the source of much of the power and irrigation water for the region around Iraq's second city. The jihadist Islamic State and its allies control swathes of both northern and western Iraq and neighboring northeastern Syria where their rule has witnessed a spate of atrocities that have shocked the world. Washington has said that operations in Syria will be needed to defeat IS, but has thus far ruled out any cooperation with the Damascus regime against the jihadists. It has, however, attempted to enlist the support of long-time foe Tehran, a key backer of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Terror of Aleppo ... Writing in the New York Times ...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize... , U.S. Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... urged "a united response led by the United States and the broadest possible coalition of nations" to combat IS. Kerry said he and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel would confer with European counterparts on the sidelines of an upcoming NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants... summit and then travel to the Middle East to build support "among the countries that are most directly threatened".

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Iraq

Iraq Troops Advance on Tikrit in Biggest Fightback Yet

2014-06-29

[AnNahar] Iraqi troops advanced towards Tikrit on Saturday pounding Death Eater positions in the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far against jihadist-led Sunni murderous Moslems. A senior officer said the army was coordinating its efforts with the United States, which has deployed military advisers to help the government push back the turbans who have overrun large areas of northern and north-central Iraq. Armed U.S. drones were flying over Storied Baghdad to provide protection for the advisers and U.S. diplomats against the murderous Moslems, led by the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ... the current version of al-Qaeda in Iraq, just as blood-thirsty and well-beloved as the original... (ISIL). Top Shiite holy man Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, who is revered among Iraq's majority community, has urged politicians to unite and form a new government within days to tackle the crisis. International agencies have raised alarm bells over the humanitarian consequences of the fighting, with up to 10,000 people having fled a northern Christian town in recent days and 1.2 million displaced by unrest in Iraq this year. Thousands of soldiers, backed by air cover, tanks and bomb disposal units, were advancing on Tikrit -- now-executed dictator Saddam Hussein's hometown -- which fell to bully boyz on June 11. "A large military operation started today to clear Tikrit of ISIL," Staff Lieutenant General Sabah Fatlawi told Agence La Belle France Presse. "ISIL fighters now have two choices -- flee or be killed," he boasted. On Thursday, troops swooped into a strategically located university campus in the city by helicopter, with sporadic festivities reported throughout Friday. Taking the university is seen as an important step towards regaining control of Tikrit, one of the biggest cities controlled by the murderous Moslems. Iraqi forces were carrying out air strikes against bully boyz inside the city, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's security front man said. They were also now in full control of a key road from Storied Baghdad to Samarra, between the capital and Tikrit, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta added. There is coordination with the U.S. "in the field of studying important targets," Atta said, without providing further details.

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Iraq

Militants Execute 21 in Two Iraq Towns, Take Another Border Crossing

2014-06-23

[AnNahar] Militants killed 21 leaders in the western Iraq towns of Rawa and Ana during two days of violence, officers and doctors said Sunday, after security forces made a "tactical" withdrawal, as the government lost control of another border crossing with Syria. Some of those killed were rubbed out on Saturday, when the Death Eaters moved into the towns, while others were slain the following day. The killings came after Iraqi security forces members departed the towns, clearing the way for the Death Eater takeover. "The military units' withdrawal (from Rawa and Ana and al-Qaim) was for the purpose of redeployment," Lieutenant General Qassem Atta said, referring to it as a "tactical" move. Witnesses said Death Eaters moved into Rawa and Ana, in Anbar province, on Saturday evening, after security officers and witnesses also reported Death Eaters entering al-Qaim, a town on the Syrian border, earlier in the day. Anti-government fighters have held all of one city in Anbar province, where the towns are located, and areas of a second since early January. The control of Rawa and Ana allows the Death Eaters to open a strategic route to neighboring Syria where they also control swathes of countryside along the Euphrates river valley. ISIL aims to create an Islamic state incorporating both Iraq and Syria, where the group has become a major force in the rebellion against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Lord of the Baath... . Media reports said Death Eaters seized control of the al-Walid border crossing with Syria on Sunday. Anti-government fighters already hold areas of the western desert province of Anbar which abuts the Syrian border, after taking all of one city and parts of another earlier in the year. Elsewhere, government forces launched an air strike on the Death Eater-held city of Tikrit, killing at least seven people, residents said, as the defense ministry announced air strikes on the northern city of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... . The Death Eaters also clashed with security forces and pro-government tribal fighters in al-Alam east of Tikrit, with Death Eaters killing the women's affairs adviser to the provincial governor. Beginning late on June 9, Death Eaters led by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ... the current version of al-Qaeda in Iraq, just as blood-thirsty and well-beloved as the original... (ISIL) but also including a number of other groups such as loyalists of executed dictator Saddam Hussein, overran most of one province and parts of three others north of Storied Baghdad. The security forces wilted in the face of the initial onslaught, in many cases abandoning vehicles, equipment and even their uniforms. They appear to have recovered in the past few days, with officials touting gains against Death Eaters, though Death Eaters have made territorial progress elsewhere.

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Iraq

Territory taken back by Iraq army

2014-06-17

[Iraq Sun] Iraq has claimed to have taken back much of the territory taken by forces of Evil who seized all of one province and some other parts of the country last week. In an offensive that was launched last Monday, the myrmidons, known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) over-ran vast swathes of land and infrastructure, including oil facilities, while Iraqi security forces performed badly, with some discarding uniforms to avoid violence and retaliation. Many Iraqi soldiers are missing following a round of hostage taking. Images of Iraqi soldiers were released on an ISIS Twitter feed on the weekend. In many cases the photographs were of soldiers being tortured by the bully boys. Some photos were of dead soldiers being trodden on or violently kicked. There have been many complaints to Twitter about the images as violent pictures and messages violate the site's policies. There are fears the Sunni forces of Evil may have killed many Iraqi soldiers, possibly near the town of Tikrit, 150 kilometres north of the capital Storied Baghdad. Militants seized Tikrit last week after first taking control of Iraq's second largest city, djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... , in the offensive that some prompted Iraqi soldiers to lay down their weapons. Much of the crisis has been blamed on global neglect of Syria's civil war, which has seen the springing up of Sunni jihadist forces. While Washington has responded to the sweeping crisis by deploying an aircraft carrier to the Gulf, Iran, which has become involved in helping Storied Baghdad, has warned any more foreign military intervention could lead to other conflict. On Sunday, Storied Baghdad expressed confidence it would be able to repel the al-Qaeda inspired ISIS with the help of Iraqi commanders and its own forces. It has been reported Iraqi soldiers recaptured two towns north of Storied Baghdad on the weekend with large myrmidon tolls. Following the battles, security front man for Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta, appeared on television to say the government had managed to overturn the push by forces of Evil with the help of the army of volunteers, who had been spurred on by a call to arms. However, by candlelight every wench is handsome... some volunteers were killed on Sunday in the town of Khales in central Iraq, when a recruitment centre came under mortar attack.

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Iraq

Iraq Forces Kill '279 Terrorists' in 24 Hours as Kurds Take Border Crossing with Syria

2014-06-16

[AnNahar] Iraqi security forces have killed 279 "terrorists" in the past 24 hours, as they push back against a major turban offensive, a security front man said on Sunday, as Kurdish forces seized control of one the two official Iraqi border crossings with Syria Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki ... Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Maliki imposed order on Basra wen the Shiites were going nuts, but has proven incapable of dealing with al-Qaeda's Sunni insurgency. Reelected to his third term in 2014... 's security front man, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta, made the announcement about the casualties during a televised news conference.

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Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Iran Assyrians support Iraq's Christians

2010-11-16

[Iran Press TV] Iranian Assyrians have held a demonstration in front of the UN office in Tehran to condemn a deadly attack on a church in Iraq last month. Hundreds of Iranian Assyrian Christians held a demonstration in front of the UN office in Tehran on Monday to condemn the October 31 massacre of Christians in Storied Baghdad's Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Salvation) Catholic Church, a Press TV correspondent reported. They also asked the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society to support Iraq's Assyrian Christian community. On the last day of October, a group of gunnies took dozens of worshippers hostage in Baghdad's Sayidat al-Nejat Catholic Church. 52 people died and 67 others were maimed in the hostage crisis, which lasted nearly four hours until police intervened. An al-Qaeda-linked organization has grabbed credit for the assault. Many Assyrian communities across the globe have held similar demonstrations to express their outrage over the deadly attack. Qassem Atta, the front man for the Baghdad Operations Command, told the Aswat al-Iraq news agency that the Iraqi security forces have jugged five of the gunnies. About 100 people were inside the church for an evening mass when the attack occurred. MP Yonathan Betkolia, the representative of the Assyrian Christian community in the Iranian Parliament, strongly denounced the attack earlier this month and criticized the international community for their silence about the incident.

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Iraq

Church attackers were in security company uniform

2010-11-02

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: The gunmen who implemented the attack on on Sayidat al-Nejat (Our Lady of Salvation) Catholic Church were wearing security companies uniform, spokesman of the Baghdad Operations Command (BOC) said on Monday. “The gunmen attacked the church carrying hand grenades,” Qassem Atta told Aswat al-Iraq news agency, noting that the forces arrested five gunmen, one of them has an Arab nationality. “The forces defused four bombs, eight hand grenades and two explosive belts,” he added. “Investigation underway with the attackers,” Atta said, noting that five of them committed suicide during the operation.

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Iraq

Spokesman denies Maliki's office ablaze

2010-10-16

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: An official security spokesman denied on Friday that the office of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in central Baghdad's heavily-fortified green zone was on fire. "Smoke? What smoke?" "News reports carried by a TV channel that fire broke out in the office of Maliki, who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi armed forces, in the green zone were groundless," Maj. General Qassem Atta, the official spokesman for the Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. Lit cigarette in the waste basket, most likely. That's a real risk in a society that isn't ashamed to smoke. Atta urged the mass media to "observe accuracy and caution when reporting news and verify them from their direct sources".

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Iraq

Baghdad blast casualties up to 20

2010-09-06

[Aswat al-Iraq] Casualties from Sunday's earlier car bomb attack in central Baghdad rose to five civilian deaths and 15 others wounded, an interior ministry source said. "A car bomb parked at al-Maydan square, central Baghdad, went off, near the old building of the defense ministry followed by a suicide attack with a car bomb, leaving five killed and 15 others wounded," the source told Aswat al-Iraq news agency. He expected the number of casualties to grow. However, Maj. General Qassem Atta, the official spokesman for the Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), told Aswat al-Iraq that two soldiers were killed and eight civilians wounded in a car bomb blast that targeted the old building of the defense ministry, the headquarters of the Iraqi army's 11th Division in Bab al-Muadham, central Baghdad. Earlier, a press release published on the BOC web site said that the suicide bomber who attacked the defense ministry building detonated his explosive vehicle after he came under security forces' fire. "The bomber detonated his explosive-rigged car near the back gate of the defense ministry building in al-Maydan square, leaving two persons killed and eight others wounded," read the release published on the BOC web site. "Gunfire was heard prior to the bombing as security forces shot at the terrorist who did not succumb to the warning signals," it added.

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Iraq

U.S. embassy says 3 security contractors killed in attack on GZ

2010-07-23

BAGHDAD / Aswat al-Iraq: Three security contractors were killed and 15 others wounded when a Katyusha rocket landed on central Baghdad’s Green Zone (GZ), according to a press release by the U.S. embassy in Baghdad on Thursday. “Also, fifteen people, including two Americans, were wounded when a rocket struck the area, home to the offices of the Iraqi government and the large U.S. Embassy,” read the release as received by Aswat al-Iraq news agency. Iraqi police said it was a mortar, not a rocket, that struck the Green Zone. Earlier on Thursday (July 22), Maj. General Qassem Atta, the official spokesman for the Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), said a Katyusha rocket landed on the bank of the River Tigris near the GZ but left no casualties or material losses. It was not immediately possible to reconcile the discrepancy. The rocket firing comes more than two months after the GZ came under similar attacks. The embassy said the three killed were two Ugandans and a Peruvian who worked for a U.S. government security contractor. Iraqi forces had taken charge of security in the heavily-fortified GZ from U.S. forces on January 1, 2010. The GZ, known as the international zone that is located on the west bank of the River Tigris, lies over an area of 10 square kilometers and is home to the republican palace, the government, the parliament, some ministries and residences and offices of several top Iraqi officials in addition to the conference hall and al-Rasheed Hotel.

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