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More Mosul Moslem Mayhem
 Battle of Tal Afar: Snipers deployed, rest of the Iraqi forces getting ready [ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Iraqi police announced on Tuesday the deployment of snipers on the outskirts of the district of Tal Afar in preparation for the military operation against ISIS. The commander of the federal police, Raid Jawdat, said in a statement that the federal police forces of the 5th and 3rd divisions, sniper teams, dozens of armored vehicles and aircraft has been readied the outskirts of Tal Afar. Jawdat confirmed the completion of all logistical preparations to start the battle of Tal Afar and recover it from the grips of ISIS. ISIS Bad Guy dies in attack on checkpoint at Nabi Yunus market Mosul (IraqiNews.com) An Islamic State gunman was killed by Iraqi security forces after attacking a checkpoint in the eastern side of Mosul, the Interior Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. The militant, who attacked the checkpoint at Nabi Yunus market, was carrying a pistol and two grenades, said the ministry. Since the Iraqi government declared early July the recapture of Mosul, Islamic State’s former capital in Iraq, police forces have been combing both sides of the city for sleeper militant cells and munition hiding places. The militants have also launched a few sporadic attacks against troops and civilians since the declaration. The Iraqi government intends to aim at other Islamic State havens in Anbar, Kirkuk and Salahuddin once it is done with retaking Tal Afar, Islamic State’s last stronghold in Nineveh which the Defense Ministry had completed preparations for invading. The Defense Ministry said recently it was waiting for orders to launch operations for the enclave. So far, operations by pro-government militias, the Popular Mobilization, have isolated the town from Mosul and from the Syrian borders, and retook several surrounding villages. Kurds detain 30 ISIS suspects in Tal Afar Tal Afar (IraqiNews.com) Kurdish Peshmerga forces arrested 30 Islamic State militants near Tal Afar, Islamic State’s last haven in Nineveh province, a security source said Wednesday. Mawazin News quoted the source saying that the militants were arrested over the past four days while attempting to flee the enclave towards Peshmerga-held territories. According to the same source, more than 600 civilians, mostly Turkmen, had fled Tal Afar towards Peshmerga deployments. Tal Afar is 65 kilometers west of Mosul, and is home to a mixed Turkmen and Arab population. Iraqi forces recaptured Mosul, Islamic State’s former capital, early July after more than eight months of U.S.-backed offensives. Iraqi PM Haider al-Abadi and his defense officials have marked Tal Afar as their next target of anti-Islamic State action. Iraqi defense officials said recently that warplanes were carrying out raids on the enclave in preparation for the ground invasion which is yet to be scheduled. Tal Afar has reportedly seen divisions among Islamic State leaderships, with occasional news telling of power conflicts and dissents among leaders, as well as attempts by some militants to flee the anticipated battle field. Since Iraqi forces launched a wide-scale campaign to retake Mosul in 2016, paramilitary troops managed to isolate the town from the Syrian borders and from the rest of Nineveh. Posted by: Fred 2017-08-17 |
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