Mosul offensive: Iraqi forces’ latest achievements

November 16, 2016 By administrator

Commander of Iraq’s elite counter-terrorism forces says his forces have marched into an eastern neighborhood of Mosul as government troops and allied fighters are trying to expel Daesh terrorists from their stronghold in the strategic northern city.

Major General Maan al-Saadi said on Wednesday that the counter-terrorism forces are making headway in Aden district of the city, located 400 kilometers north of the capital Baghdad, warning against the presence of Daesh booby traps and hidden explosive devices there, Arabic-language al-Sumaria television network reported.

The achievement was followed by a Daesh mortar attack against al-Zahra district in eastern Mosul. At least 14 civilians reportedly lost their lives and seven others were injured.

Dozens of ‘Islamic State’ militants killed in Iraq’s Kirkuk offensive

October 22, 2016 By administrator

karkuk-isis Security forces in Iraq have overcome a major assault by “Islamic State” in Kirkuk, killing 48 of the militants. The advance comes amid claims of a mass grave found outside the city of Mosul, which is still held by IS.

“Islamic State” fighters reportedly killed 284 men and boys as Iraqi-led coalition forces closed in on Mosul, according to an anonymous source quoted by US broadcaster CNN.

Killed on Thursday and Friday, the civilians were being used by IS as human shields, the source said, adding that the bodies were bulldozed into a mass grave after being shot. CNN said it could not confirm the intelligence source’s statements.

Elsewhere in Iraq, government forces killed 48 IS operatives in Kirkuk, Brigadier General Khattab Omar Aref said on Saturday. Some of the IS militants blew themselves up when they were cornered by police, he added.

Security officials said at least 46 other people were killed and over 100 people wounded. Officials called for blood donations to help the wounded and injured.

Iraqi state television reported that security forces had regained full control of the Kurdish-majority city.

“The security forces control the situation now, but there are still pockets of jihadists in some southern and eastern neighborhoods, Aref said. “We have foiled this large [IS] plot, which was to take control of government buildings, including security headquarters…They were denied just like they are being defeated on the outskirts of Mosul.”

Counterterrorism and intelligence units continued hunting down IS fighters who had stormed public buildings early on Friday. The city was caught off-guard when the IS launched an “inghimasi” attack, which refers to jihadi operations in which suicide bombers intend to unleash chaos more than achieving any political gain.

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.

Pope was at first told in Rome the term genocide was offensive

June 27, 2016 By administrator

Pope Francis on Sunday, June 26 said that he knew no word to describe the annihilation of Armenians other than “genocide” until he was elected as the head of the Roman Catholic Church.

On his way back from a three-day-visit to Armenia, the pope was asked about his U-turn decision to pronounce the term genocide during a reception with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, RIA reports.

“When referring to the destruction of the Armenian people, we used the term genocide in Argentina and installed a khachkar at the Buenos Aires Cathedral to commemorate the Armenian Genocide,” Francis said.

“Arriving in Rome, I heard the expression “the great evil” and was told that the term genocide was offensive. But I have always cited the three major genocides of the 20th century: The Armenian Genocide, that of Hitler and Stalin’s genocide.”

“When I was preparing for the holy mass last year (on April 12 when Francis commemorated the centennial of the Armenian Genocide – PAN), I found out that Saint John Paul II had earlier used that word and decided to cite him,” the pontiff said.

“It was not greeted well, with Turkey denouncing my decision and recalling its ambassador to the Vatican who, however, returned several months later.”

“I hadn’t initially included that word in my speech during a visit to the country, by after hearing the tone of the Armenian President’s speech, it would sound very strange if I did not repeat what I said a year ago,” he added.

Francis spent three days in Armenia from June 24 to June 26.

Syria: U.S.-backed fighters begin offensive on edge of ISIS’ capital

May 24, 2016 By administrator

Members of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces gather to speak to reporters as they announce an operation to retake Raqqa, Syria, back from the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), in an image realeased by the SDF on Twitter, May24, 2016.
SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces)

A U.S.-backed Syrian coalition of Kurdish and Arab fighters has launched an offensive to begin forcing Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters from the de-facto capital city of their self-proclaimed Islamic “caliphate” — or at least to begin doing so.

The Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF, as the umbrella group of fighters is called, announced the move on Twitter, and it was soon reported on Kurdish media and confirmed to CBS News by a representative for the group.

SDF statements posted on the group’s official Twitter account said the operation was focused on liberating northern Raqqa, to protect the largely-Kurdish areas to the north from ISIS attack.

Early reports of casualties all centered in the rural area to the north of the city.

ISIS has controled Raqqa in northern Syria since sweeping across vast swathes of that country and neighboring Iraq in 2014. It is believed to operate most of its administration and control and command from the city.

It was not immediately clear how far the SDF hoped to push into Raqqa proper — or how quickly, but a commander with the Kurdish YPG militia, which is taking part in the operation, said the operation launched Tuesday was a necessary first step to reclaim the city.

He told CBS News the SDF fighters needed to focus on clearing the area to the north of the city of ISIS militants, and then hold that ground before launching a wider attack on the heart of ISIS-held Raqqa.

U.S. officials have indicated to CBS News that the push announced by SDF likely does not amount to a concerted effort to retake the entire city, yet. The task is too large for the SDF on its own, and there is no indication, in spite of SDF claims of backing by the U.S.-led coalition, that a significant international operation is under way.

Raqqa sits only about 50 miles south of Syria’s border with Turkey, in land long-dominated by Kurds.

In a message posted to its official Twitter account, the SFD said members of the U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition, dubbed “Operation Inherent Resolve,” would “accompany” SDF forces on the offensive.

Operation Inherent Resolve has largely consisted, from the U.S. standpoint, of airstrikes against ISIS positions in both Syria and Iraq. Pentagon officials would not comment on any level of involvement by Operation Inherent Resolve or the U.S. military in or around Raqqa.

About 200 U.S. troops are in Syria in a training capacity.

Boris Johnson wins ‘Erdogan Offensive Poetry Competition’

May 19, 2016 By administrator

Erdogan jock What rhymes with Ankara? Not very much, but that didn’t stop Conservative Boris Johnson writing an Erdogan limerick. He won The Spectator magazine’s competition showing solidarity with German comedian Jan Böhmermann.

Former London mayor and current Conservative MP Boris Johnson won an irreverent competition in weekly British news magazine “The Spectator” on Thursday, for his limerick criticizing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Spectator editor Douglas Murray announced on the weekly’s blog that Johnson, currently a leading light in the “Brexit” campaign, won the competition.

“I think it a wonderful thing that a British political leader has shown that Britain will not bow before the putative caliph in Ankara,” Murray wrote.

According to Murray, Johnson agreed to create a limerick for the competition during a joint interview with the Spectator and Swiss weekly “Die Weltwoche,” in which the Tory called the case against German comedian Jan Böhmermann a “scandal.”

“If somebody wants to make a joke about the love that flowers between the Turkish president and a goat, he should be able to do so in any European country, including Turkey,” Johnson said.

His statement was shortly followed by the poem, which described Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan as a “young fellow from Ankara” who “sowed his wild oats / with the help of a goat / but didn’t even stop to thankera.”

Source: http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/the-spectator-podcast-hillarys-america/

Our latest podcast features @BorisJohnson's prize-winning Erdogan poem Listen here: https://t.co/a2vm9RUuKf pic.twitter.com/lrTGdQJ8EV

— The Spectator (@spectator) May 19, 2016

Syrian Army Plans to Launch Offensive on Deir Ez-Zor, Raqqa

April 29, 2016 By administrator

The Syrian armed forces plan to retake the city of Raqqa from Daesh, and Russian aviation is expected to support the operation, according to Russia’s UN Office envoy.

GENEVA (Sputnik) – The Syrian army is planning to launch an offensive on Deir Ez-Zor and Raqqa with the support of the Russian air group deployed in Syria, Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva Alexei Borodavkin said.

“In line with UNSC [UN Security Council] Resolution 2254, the ceasefire regime in Syria does not apply to Daesh, al-Nusra Front and other terrorist groups…As a result of operations by the Syrian armed forces with [the] support of Russian combat aircraft [the Syrian] city of Palmyra has been liberated, and now further offensive operations are being planned in the direction of Deir Ez-Zor and Raqqa,” Borodavkin told reporters in Geneva.

Syria Ceasefire Mostly Holding but Some Forces Attempt to Disrupt It

“There are forces that are deliberately provoking the failure of the cessation of hostilities. We are constantly talking about the need to block the Turkish-Syrian border through which terrorist group fighters flow and weapons, military equipment and ammunition are smuggled. It is necessary to firmly curb this flow in order to strengthen the ceasefire regime,” Borodavkin stressed.

According to the Russian envoy, the United States and Russia are making joint efforts to put an end to the Syrian conflict.

“We are well aware that there are opponents of the cessation of hostilities and they will do everything they can to disrupt this regime, which is what is happening now,” Borodavkin said, adding nonetheless that “in general, the regime is being adhered to.”

A US-Russia-brokered ceasefire came into force across Syria on February 27. Syria has been mired in civil war since March 2011, with government forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad fighting numerous opposition factions and extremist groups. The truce does not apply to terrorist groups such as Daesh and al-Nusra Front.

More Militant Groups Cut Ties With al-Nusra Front, Join Ceasefire

“The groups that want to join the cessation of hostilities must sign relevant documents, report their exact location and disengage from Nusra Front units because, at present, they are, unfortunately, heavily mixed on the battlefield,” Borodavkin told reporters.

According to Borodavkin, “certain progress” has been observed in the US work with illegal armed groups in Syria.

“Contacts and cooperation between Russian and US militaries have recently intensified. Phone conferences between Hmeymim [Russian air base in Syria], Amman, Moscow and Washington are regularly held. Our militaries are meeting at the negotiating table with maps and necessary intelligence data that help to prevent violations of the cessation of hostilities and strengthen it. I think that in the near future many issues will be resolved within this US-Russian military cooperation,” Borodavkin told journalists.

No Evidence Jaish al-Islam, Ahrar ash-Sham Join Truce

“We heard statements from these groups that they have allegedly joined the cessation of hostilities [in Syria] but we have no official confirmation [of these statements],” Borodavkin told journalists.

The envoy recalled that the leadership of Jaish al-Islam and Ahrar ash-Sham had repeatedly stated they were fighting “shoulder to shoulder” with al-Nusra Front militants and called on the jihadists to unite in their fight against government forces.

“If Ahrar ash-Sham and Jaish al-Islam are serious about finding a political solution to the conflict in Syria, they have to radically change their positions,” Borodavkin emphasized.

On Tuesday, Russia requested to add the two groups operating in Syria to the UN sanctions list that already contains Daesh. The Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee (HNC) of the Syrian opposition includes representatives of both Ahrar ash-Sham and Jaish al-Islam.

London magazine offers cash prize in ‘President Erdogan Offensive Poetry Competition’

April 20, 2016 By administrator

Erdogan satire W One thousand British pounds are on the line in a competition designed to personally insult Turkish President Erdogan. A German comedian is facing prosecution over a satirical TV spot that caused Erdogan to take offense.

The British magazine “The Spectator” launched a contest on Monday that will reward the person who writes what it deems to be the best “filthy and insulting as possible” poem about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with 1,000 pounds (1,266 euros, $1,440).

The lewd example provided by the creator of the contest, Douglas Murray, is in limerick form. While the magazine says “almost everything insulting that is worth saying can usually be included within the five lines of that beautiful and delicate form,” it says it will not exclude other forms of poetry.

German late-night television host Jan Böhmermann recited a poem on public television that called Erdogan a “pervert” and “zoophile” who has sex with goats, represses Kurds and watches child pornography.

Turkey responded by requesting that Böhmermann face criminal prosecution. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the poem was “deliberately offensive” and that she would allow Turkey’s request for prosecution to continue. In Germany, it is against the law to insult a foreign head of state, although Markel has admitted it is time for the law to be repealed. Böhmermann has since been put under police protection as the charges are examined.

“The fact such a trial could even be contemplated demonstrates that Germany is becoming little more than a satrapy of Erdogan’s,” Murray writes in “The Spectator.”

He adds “I’m a free-born British man, and we don’t live under the blasphemy laws of such despots” before announcing the poetry contest.

Initially, no prize was offered, but the online story was amended to announce that a reader “who shares The Spectator’s belief in the freedom of speech” had offered the prize of 1,000 pounds. In outlining the selection criteria, Murray writes “limericks will be excluded from consideration from the top prize if they are (a) not obscene or (b) non-defamatory” and encourages sexual jabs such as those in Böhmermann’s poem.

Debate in Germany over Böhmermann’s case has centered on where satire ends and deliberate insults begin in the context of a free press.

The magazine’s website claims it is “the oldest continuously published magazine in the English language.” Despite existing since 1828, the site reads, “The Spectator’s taste for controversy remains undiminished.”

British writer Douglas Murray starts ‘offensive poetry competition’ about Turkey’s Erdoğan

April 19, 2016 By administrator

Murry Erdogan satire British author and journalist Douglas Murray announced the start of an “offensive poetry competition” about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on April 18, amid the ongoing “insult” row between a German comedian and the president.

Murray, who writes for the weekly Spectator magazine, penned the first poem in the competition, which is titled “The President Erdoğan Offensive Poetry Competition.”

The winning poem will be announced on June 23, though Murray said there would be no prize for the winner because he could not find a sponsor for the competition.

The news comes after German comedian Jan Böhmermann recited a sexually crude satirical poem about Erdoğan on his “Neo Magazin Royale” show on German public broadcaster ZDF on March 31, unleashing a bitter row about freedom of speech issues.

Erdoğan filed a legal complaint against Böhmermann over the poem on April 12, which was followed by Ankara’s request to seek his prosecution.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced on April 15 that she had accepted the Turkish request for the prosecution of Böhmermann, who could be convicted under the rarely-enforced section 103 of the Germam criminal code on insulting organs or representatives of foreign states.

Meanwhile, Böhmermann has announced via his official Facebook page that he has decided to suspend his own TV show.

April/19/2016

Source: hurriyetdailynews