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| Iraq |
| ISIS Oil Minister dies in Iraqi artillery strike |
| 2016-05-01 |
| ERBIL – Iraqi army forces shelled strongholds of the radical group of Islamic State (ISIS) in the northern province of Nineveh, killing a senior jihadi member along with several escorts, military sources reported on Saturday. “The army-led operation, which took place on Friday evening, targeted the ISIS senior official and the oil minister Wahid as-Sabaawi, a former leading member of the Farman Hadi Hamad group, during the 15th Artillery Squad’s bombardment on the outskirts of al-Qayyarah area south of Mosul,” the Nineveh operations command in the Iraqi army said in an official statement. In March, US-led coalition forces conducted several airstrikes in the Iraqi province of Anbar, killing Mohammed Khalaf al-Satouri, a senior official in the ISIS group along with four of his companions in the western district of Hit in Anbar, according to official sources. Also in March, Thaher Mohammed Salman al-Sabawi, a top ISIS commander in Nineveh province, was reported dead along with other militants from the group, according to Iraqi security sources. Speaking to ARA News, Iraqi media worker Adib al-Jiddea said that the group has received painful blows during the past few months, especially after the US-led coalition forces intensified airstrikes against its command centers and vital resources in Syria and Iraq. “The radical group was also exposed to painful blows by the Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army troops who were able to kill dozens of senior jihadis over the past few months,” al-Jiddea reported. “The international and local powers are determined to eradicate this terrorist group because it has become a real threat not only to the region but also to the entire world,” he said. The coalition’s airstrikes have also recently killed dozens of prominent ISIS leaders across Syria besides hitting tactical units, Sharia courts and oil fields held by ISIS. With the death toll increasing in its ranks, the hardline group currently suffers shortage of manpower and financial resources. |
| Posted by:badanov |