The Mosul operation and the latest situation in the region. Turkish Trained “Hashdi Vatani” Terrorist near Mosul

October 14, 2016 By administrator

hashdi-vatani The liberation of Mosul is not going to happen in the short term. Even if the operation starts, the “Mosul Issue” will continue. And in conjunction, the military, political and diplomatic tensions will deepen.

KIRKUK – ANF – AMED DİCLE

As the discussions on the operation on Mosul continue, so do military activity and dispatching in the region. The Iraqi army has started significant military dispatching especially from the Kirkuk line towards the Hawija front.

There were intense aerial attacks and helicopter activity in the same region yesterday (October 13). Hawija is considered the most important gate for the liberation of Mosul.

The dispatching towards Hawija is an important development, but it doesn’t necessarily mean an operation on Mosul. Some sources say the operation will start in the last 10 days of October, but the military and political developments on the ground are not suitable for this operation yet. The conditions have yet to be met.

It looks like the political consensus and military preparation for the liberation of Mosul will take some time. The question of how Mosul will be taken from ISIS and who will control it after it’s been taken hasn’t been answered yet. The issue is not resolved at the tables, and therefore can’t be reflected on the battle field. The military force that can carry out such an operation has not been formed yet in any case.

REASONS PREVENTING THE OPERATION

There are three basic factors that constitute obstacles for the Mosul operation and thus allow the ISIS invasion to continue.

One: Conflict of interest among local, regional and international forces, and political and diplomatic disagreements they cause.

Two: The threat from Turkey and its local partners towards the region.

Three: More than one million civilians in the operation grounds. Protecting these civilians and relocating them to safe zones.

One can list many more issues as continuation on these three fundamental topics. The big picture emerges more clearly when the positions from each party is analyzed.

THE US AND THE INTERNATIONAL COALITION

The preparations for the possible operation on Mosul are carried out by the coalition led by the US. The US is in contact with all parties in the region but the Baghdad administration is stated as the political respondent. For the US, conducting an operation on ISIS is bigger than gathering the forces in the region around a table and “convincing” them. They want a joint operation with the Shias, Sunnis, Kurds and other forces. They want Mosul to be controlled by Baghdad. And as always, they are trying to pose themselves as the “saviour power” to consolidate their interests in the region. The coalition isn’t acting independently from Washington politics.

THE BAGHDAD ADMINISTRATION

Abadi’s government naturally works in harmony with the US and Iran. They accept Iran’s Heshti Shabi militia forces to take part in the operation to some extent. They also have an agreement with the Southern Kurdistan administration. Although they have not officially announced this yet, Baghdad also accepts some local regional forces trained by the PKK guerrillas to take part in the operation. The duty of these forces is to protect the lands they live on and to push back the ISIS threat.

TURKEY

Turkey is in a position to pose a great threat to the current situation in Mosul and its future. The soldiers they have stationed in Bashiqa and the groups called Hashdi Vatani they have trained are as dangerous as ISIS. Turkey wants Mosul to be turned over to Sunni Arab forces called Hashdi Vatani. These groups are ideologically no different than ISIS. In several areas, they are mixed with ISIS and they are in alliance.

Ankara’s only ally in Mosul are the Nuceyfis, family of the former Governor of Mosul. They organized the Hashdi Vatani over the Nuceyfi family and their contacts. Former Mosul Governor Asil Nuceyfi is the man who turned the city over to ISIS in one night. Asil Nuceyfi had met with Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara one week before he handed Mosul over to ISIS. He stayed in Hewler, Ankara and Istanbul after the invasion of Mosul.

The men Turkey calls “Mosulis we trained” are the Hashdi Vatani, and they are loyal to the former governor Asil Nuceyfi who was removed from duty by the Baghdad administration. They have no official standing in Iraq. Turkey wants to control Mosul over these groups.

At the base of Turkey’s Mosul politics, there are of course the Kurds. The Turkish administration wants to update the Ankara Treaty made with the UK in 1926. There is only one condition at the heart of this treaty: There should be no Kurds in Mosul, the city should remain in the control of Sunni Arabs.

But in the current situation, no force in the region, nor the Baghdad administration, Iran, US or the Coalition, want Turkey to take part in the Mosul operation. Turkey not taking part in the operation means them losing their influence over the region too. The only groups that want Turkey there are the KDP and the Nuceyfis. Turkey taking part in the operation under such circumstances will not bring stability to the region, on the contrary, it will make things worse. Not taking part will be a bigger obsession. In either case, Turkey loses.

IRAN

Iran is involved in the Mosul case over Baghdad, they have to. Iran will never accept the Sunni forces backed by Turkey to control Mosul. Iran must have influence over Mosul, even if they don’t control it. If they lose in Mosul, they will have lost in Iraq in general. Iran’s influence will only be limited to Baghdad, Basra and partially in Southern Kurdistan. This will hurt Iran’s position in the region. In the current situation, there is no serious and vocal opposition to Iran being in Mosul.

SOUTHERN KURDISTAN

Southern Kurdistan administration is fragmented on the Mosul operation. PUK forces are more in line with the Baghdad administration, while KDP conducts Turkey-guided politics. This position of the KDP hurts the Kurds in general. There have been some meetings among Kurds for the KDP to leave this position, but these have not yielded results yet. If KDP continues to be in Turkey’s shadow over Mosul, they will lose big. And this will be harmful for Kurds. Another effort by the KDP is to prevent PKK forces taking part in the Mosul operation.

THE PKK AND DEMOCRATIC MOSUL

PKK guerrillas are positioned in Kirkuk and to the south. With them are a large group of guerrilla forces to fight ISIS in the Maxmur region. The guerrilla forces that moved to the region to liberate Shengal from ISIS remain in their positions. The guerrilla forces state that they will take part in the Mosul operation if there is an agreement.

If there is an operation in the Hawija region, the guerrilla forces will play an effective role there. This is because of the fact that it isn’t realistic to carry out a military operation against ISIS in the region without the guerrilla. The same is true for the Tal Afar front in the Shengal direction. Due to their positions, it is imperative that the PKK forces or the local forces trained by the guerrilla take part in this operation.

The Baghdad administration is rumored to want PKK to take part in the operation. But the opposition from Turkey and Iran in this matter puts Baghdad in a difficult position. Then again, it is said that the Shengal forces who came together around Öcalan’s ideology and formed their defense units and some other groups will be taking part in the operation, and that they are preparing for it. PKK offers the other Kurdish forces that Kurds take part in the Mosul operation under a “Joint Command”, but the KDP’s negative approach causes Kurds to miss this opportunity. Despite all, PKK is trying to minimise all tension with the KDP to avoid falling into Ankara’s trap.

PKK sources have a perspective for the future of Mosul. According to this, the administration should be left to the locals after Mosul has been liberated. They propose a “Democratic Mosul” model that will include all groups, like Sunnis, Shias, Kurds, Arabs, Turkmens, and others to remove the current conflicts and clashes.

In summary: The liberation of Mosul is not going to happen in the short term. Even if the operation starts, the “Mosul Issue” will continue. And in conjunction, the military, political and diplomatic tensions will deepen.

Sputniknews Report: Washington and Riyadh ‘Plan to Let 9,000 Daesh Leave Mosul and Move to Syria’

October 13, 2016 By administrator

deash-move-to-syria Intelligence agencies of the United States and Saudi Arabia plan to allow more than 9,000 Daesh fighters leave the Iraqi city of Mosul and travel to eastern Syria where they will take part in a major offensive to recapture Deir ez-Zor and Palmyra among over things, an unnamed source in military and diplomatic circles in Moscow told RIA Novosti.

“American and Saudi intelligence services have reached an agreement to provide all militants a safe passage to leave the city with their families before” Iraqi security forces and their allies launch the operation to free Mosul, he suggested. The matter was ostensibly settled during the preliminary phase of the offensive.

When the Mosul campaign begins, “coalition warplanes will launch airstrikes solely against isolated and abandoned houses within the city,” the source noted, adding that these targets have been chosen in coordination with the militants.

Daesh fighters, he said, will then move to Syria.

“More than 9,000 Daesh fighters from Mosul will be redeployed to eastern Syria to carry out a large-scale offensive which will involve among other things taking control over Deir ez-Zor and Palmyra,” the source detailed.

For Washington, this plan, the source suggested, will be an attempt to diminish Russia’s success in Syria. Moscow has been credited with helping the Syrian Arab Army turn the tide of war that has seen Damascus fighting against foreign-sponsored terrorist groups for more than five years. “Apart from political dividends, the other goal of this operation clearly involves discrediting the achievements of the Russian Aerospace Forces. Surely, this is also an attempt to undermine [Bashar] al-Assad,” the source said.

Senior officials at the General Intelligence Directorate, Saudi Arabia’s primary intelligence, served as mediators between the US and the militants, the source said, adding that they will also guarantee that Washington delivers on the deal. He explained that a similar idea was previously employed in Fallujah.

Baghdad-led forces freed Fallujah in late June after a three-months-long siege. Political analyst Alexander Perendzhiev doubted that this plan will work. Daesh “has Iraqi roots; Mosul is their stronghold and they will clearly be unwilling to leave Iraq,” he told RIA Novosti. “Mosul will probably remain in the hands of terrorists. Some of them will travel to Syria and the rest will pretend that they surrender.” The expert further said that the Democrats will try to claim any success in Mosul, whether perceived or real.

IRAQ Shia militia: ‘Turkey and IS will be treated the same in Mosul’

October 9, 2016 By administrator

turkey-is-treated Iraqi Shia militias warn Turkey that the troops stationed near Mosul will be their target.

As the Mosul liberation operation to retake the city from the Islamic State (IS) approaches, challenges arise before the operation, including the presence of Turkish troops in Bashiq, northern Mosul.

Iranian-backed Shia militias, Asaib ahl al-Haq, in a statement last week threatened Turkish troops near Mosul, stating that “Turkish troops deployed near Mosul will be our target.”

Qais al-Khazali, the leader of Asaib ahl al-Haq militia stated that “It is not Turkey or Erdogan that decide on the participation of Hashd al-Shaabi. We will participate in the operation and it is us who will not allow Turkish troops to participate.”

Jawad al-Tilbawi, a Hashd al-Shaabi official told Iraqi local media outlets on Saturday that “The Turkish troops in northern Mosul will be a legitimate target of the joint Iraqi security forces,” adding that “We will deal with Turkish troops in the same way we are treating Daesh [an Arabic pejorative name for IS].”

Elsewhere, the Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said during a press conference on Friday that “Involvement of Shia militias in the Mosul operation will not bring peace to the city. But it will increase problems.”

Mosul is the second biggest Iraqi province in terms of population and area that hosts Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen, Muslims, Christians and Ezidis. IS extremists took control over the city in June 2015 following the retreat of the Iraqi army.

The Iraqi government has requested the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to discuss the presence of Turkish troops in the Iraqi soil and it is expected that the topic be discussed by the UNSC on Monday.

Iraq rejects Erdogan comments on Turkey’s participation in Mosul battle

October 4, 2016 By administrator

Source: Xinhua 2016-10-03 20:19:34

BAGHDAD, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) — The Iraqi Foreign Ministry on Monday rejected recent comments by the Turkish president over Ankara’s willingness to join in the imminent battle to flush out Islamic State (IS) militants from their last major stronghold in Mosul.

“The Iraqi Foreign Ministry rejects the repeated comments made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan about the battle to liberate Mosul,” a ministry spokesman said in a statement.

Such comments “represent a blatant interference in Iraqi internal affairs and a violation of principles in bilateral relations and good neighborliness,” the spokesman said in the online statement.

Ankara has ignored Baghdad’s repeated calls for withdrawing Turkish troops deployed on Iraqi territories, he added.

The Iraqi statement came after Erdogan’s comments on Saturday during a parliamentary session, in which Turkish legislators voted for an extension of the mandate of Turkish forces in Syria and Iraq for one more year.

The mandate, given to the Turkish armed forces in 2014, was last extended for one year in September 2015.

Erdogan said Mosul could be freed from IS militants but warned that Ankara had to be involved in any operation and be included in the decision-making process.

“Turkey cannot be left off the table. The others don’t have such a border (with Iraq),” he said. “They may want us to stay as spectators but that decision is also going to be made here.”

The deployment of hundreds of Turkish troops in northern Iraq, however, has caused a row between Turkey and Iraq as Baghdad repeatedly said that the Turkish forces had entered Iraqi territories without the knowledge of the Iraqi government, which viewed their presence as a violation of the country’s sovereignty.

However, the Turkish government said that withdrawing Turkish troops from Iraq is out of the question and that the Turkish soldiers are in Iraq as part of an international mission to train and equip Iraqi forces fighting the IS group.

‘Erdogan ISIS “Daesh” in Panic’: Commanders Fleeing From Mosul ‘En Masse’ Ahead of Major Op

October 4, 2016 By administrator

‘Erdogan ISIS “Daesh” in Panic’: Commanders Fleeing From Mosul ‘En Masse’ Ahead of Major Op

Daesh militants are fleeing Mosul, the group’s stronghold in Iraq, since a long-awaited large-scale operation aimed at freeing the second largest city in the country is expected to be launched in the coming days, Said Mamuzini, a press secretary for the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Mosul, told Sputnik.

“As part of the operation the Iraqi Armed Forces and Peshmerga are shelling Daesh targets in the areas close to Mosul,” he said. “Additional security measures have been taken on the border. According to our information, the militants are digging trenches around the city, as well as setting up traps using explosives and mines.” The spokesperson added that Daesh fighters have placed booby-traps in empty houses and left trucks rigged with explosives on the outskirts of the city that the brutal group captured in a blitz offensive on June 10, 2014.

“Daesh is in a state of panic ahead of the operation in Mosul,” he detailed. “According to our sources, many fighters have left the city for Raqqa,” the group’s de facto capital. “Daesh commanders and their families have moved to Raqqa en masse.”

According to Mamuzini, the brutal group has relocated its key forces to Syria. This offers hope that the city could be liberated sooner than expected. “Daesh’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is reportedly pursuing a new strategy with regard to Mosul. He told his fighters that if they are capable of fighting for Mosul, they should fight and if not, then they should leave booby traps and mines, destroy the city and flee,” he said.

Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga Commander: We don’t want Turkey in Mosul operation

October 4, 2016 By administrator

peshmerga-no-turkey-mosul Kirkuk Peshmerga Commander said the Iraqi central government and coalition forces do not want Turkey’s involvement in the Mosul operation, adding: “If Turkey partakes in this operation, I guess this could end up in clashes with Iraqi forces.”

Kirkuk Peshmerga Commander Wıstan Resul spoke to ANF about the operation to liberate Mosul which is expected to start soon.

Resul stated that: “Peshmerga forces will advance from east of Mosul. Their progress continues and they have taken control over a large part of this line. However, peshmerga forces will not enter the city centre of Mosul. We are waiting for the beginning of the operation which is being determined by the coalition forces and the Iraqi central government.”

Resul remarked that they expect the battle to last long and be severe, saying: “In consideration of the preparations being made, I guess a major battle could develop in Mosul city centre and attacks with multiple battle methods could take place, especially on the other side of the river.”

Resul pointed out that they, the Iraqi central government and coalition forces do not want Turkey’s involvement in the Mosul operation, adding: “If Turkey partakes in this operation, I guess this could end up in clashes with Iraqi forces.”

Kirkuk Peshmerga Commander Wıstan Resul also spoke about the Hawija operation which -he said- they were running in coordination with the Iraqi central government.

“Operational forces have taken up their positions and we have already determined how they will move. We will make a statement once the time for the operation comes”, he added.

Source: http://www.anfenglish.com/kurdistan/peshmerga-commander-we-don-t-want-turkey-in-mosul-operation

https://youtu.be/nWatPqUkG8U

Mosul offensive to start soon, French minister says

September 30, 2016 By administrator

mosul-attack An Iraqi government-led offensive to retake the northern Iraqi city of Mosul from Islamic State will start soon, France’s defense minister said on Friday, September 30 after French warplanes took off from the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier to strike the militant group, Reuters reports.

The United States on Thursday increased the number of troops it has in Iraq to more than 5,000 as part of a U.S.-led coalition providing air support, training and advice to the Iraqi military, which collapsed in 2014 in the face of Islamic State’s territorial gains and advance towards Baghdad.

Iraqi forces, including Kurdish peshmerga forces and mostly Iranian-backed Shi’ite militias, have retaken around half of that territory over the past two years. Mosul, the largest city under the hardline group’s control anywhere across its self-proclaimed caliphate, is likely to be the biggest battle yet.

“The battle for Mosul has not started yet. (The operations) are the extension of our support for the coalition,” Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters at a naval shipyard in northwestern France. “There will soon be the main attack.”

The carrier, which arrived in the eastern Mediterranean this week, holds about 1,900 personnel and is accompanied by an attack submarine, several frigates and refueling ships as well as fighter jets and surveillance aircraft.

Eight war planes took off for a mission over Iraq earlier on Friday, according to the defense ministry.

France, the first country to join U.S.-led air strikes in Iraq, has stepped up aerial operations against Islamic State, including in Syria, after several attacks by the group in France.

Paris also has special forces operating in both countries and has provided weapons to Syrian rebel groups, peshmerga and Iraqi forces.

Mosul offensive to displace a million people, UNHCR warns

September 29, 2016 By administrator

A member of Iraqi counterterrorism forces stands guard near graffiti supportive of the “Islamic State” after expelling the group from Fallujah

UNHCR’s Iraq chief has warned ‘one of the largest manmade disasters’ in modern history would follow the military campaign later this year. Some 60,000 people have already fled the city since Iraq announced its plans.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) chief in Iraq on Thursday warned that up to one million people could need assistance in the wake of a military offensive to reclaim Mosul from the so-called “Islamic State” militant group.

“Mosul has the potential to be one of the largest man made disasters for many, many years,” UNHCR Iraq director Bruno Geddo said at a press conference in Geneva. “More than a million could be displaced as a result of the forthcoming offensive.”

“We are planning for at least 700,000 who will be in need of assistance, shelter, food, water, everything that you need in a situation of humanitarian disaster,” Geddo added.

However, the UN refugee agency does not have sufficient resources to host all those expected to flee the war zone, lacking capacities to offer the necessary humanitarian aid for about 400,000 people. The Iraqi government said it would provide emergency accommodation for an additional 150,000 people.

The offensive is expected to being as early as October, although it is more likely to take place towards the end of the year, Geddo noted.

The IS group rose to notoriety in June 2014. Then, it launched a major ground offensive to expand its so-called caliphate in Iraq and Syria, culminating in the group seizing control of Mosul, one of Iraq’s largest cities.

The US-led coalition against the militant group has been preparing with Iraqi forces, including tribal militias, to wrestle the city out of the militant group’s control.

More than 60,000 people have fled Mosul and surrounding areas since March, when the Iraqi army first announced it would was preparing for the military campaign.

Iraq denies presence of coalition forces in Mosul libration operations

September 25, 2016 By administrator

The Iraqi military has denied the participation of foreign troops in the upcoming operation to liberate Mosul from the hands of Daesh terrorists.

“Troops participating in the plan to liberate Iraqi cities, including Mosul, are purely Iraqi,” said spokesman for Iraq’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Brigadier-general Yehia Rasoul on Sunday.

He noted that forces taking part in the operation will namely be the Iraqi army, anti-terrorism forces, the federal police, and the Popular Mobilization Units.

“The presence of the international coalition forces is meant for intelligence exchange, carrying out airstrikes against Daesh and training and arming Iraqi forces,” he added.

Rasoul made the announcement after media reports that the US was seeking to send 500 more troops into Iraq ahead of the operations to retake Mosul.

Over the last few months, Iraq has been preparing for the assault on Daesh in Mosul, the country’s second largest city which slipped into the hands of the terrorists in the summer of 2014. Government forces have managed to recapture all the other places that Daesh had seized, with the last major one being the city of Fallujah, about 50 kilometers west of the capital Baghdad, which was liberated in late June.

Violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since Daesh launched an offensive in the country in June 2014, and seized territory.Iraqi army soldiers and fighters from allied Popular Mobilization Units are seeking to win back militant-held regions in joint operations.

Iraqi forces reach center of key town near Mosul

September 22, 2016 By administrator

Iraqi military and volunteer forces have reached the center of a strategic town near the Daesh stronghold of Mosul.

Iraqi army troops and pro-government volunteers on Thursday seized the center of Shirqat, a key town located 100 km south of Mosul, a source with the Iraqi Joint Operations Command in Salahuddin Province said.

The Arabic-language al-Sumeria television said Iraqi troops had taken control of the governor’s office in the town and hoisted the Iraqi flag over the building.

The network also said the town had been “liberated.” It seems, however, that areas of the town still remain to be purged of the terrorists.

Three army personnel were purportedly killed during clashes with Daesh terrorists in the town.

Army troops and allied fighters had earlier managed to free villages surrounding Shirqat.

Mosul, which is the second largest city in Iraq, has been under the Daesh control for more than two years.

Iraqi security forces have been closing in on the city in recent operations to retake it.

Violence has plagued the northern and western parts of Iraq ever since Daesh launched an offensive in the country in June 2014, and seized territory.

« Previous Page
1
…
5
6
7
8
9
…
15
Next Page »