Iraq in Crisis- Merged Superthread

[CougarKing]

The name of the current operation has been chosen:

Defense News

Campaign Against Islamic State Named 'Operation Inherent Resolve'

The war against the Islamic State now has a name: “Operation Inherent Resolve.”

That announcement by the Joint Staff comes almost 10 weeks after the US began airstrikes in Iraq and later Syria to blunt the Islamic State, which has carved out a Taliban-like caliphate in both countries.

The Wall Street Journal reported Oct. 3 that US military leaders had rejected the name “Operation Inherent Resolve” because of a feeling that it was “just kind of ‘bleh,’ ” one unidentified military office told the newspaper.

Air Force Col. Ed Thomas, a spokesman for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to comment on whether the top brass initially had rejected the name and then reconsidered it.

According to CENTCOM, the name “is intended to reflect the unwavering resolve and deep commitment of the US and partner nations in the region and around the globe to eliminate the terrorist group ISIL and the threat they pose to Iraq, the region and the wider international community. It also symbolizes the willingness and dedication of coalition members to work closely with our friends in the region and apply all available dimensions of national power necessary — diplomatic, informational, military, economic — to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL.”

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[MilEME09]

NY Times article about the Pentagon covering up Chemical weapons exposure to US and Iraqi troops, and the new threat of those agents falling into the hands of ISIS.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/10/14/world/middleeast/us-casualties-of-iraq-chemical-weapons.html

its way to long to direct post, but the threat of Chemical IED's has already happened, and knowing the ISIS hand book so far, it could get worse.

 

[tomahawk6]

NYT article is suspect.

 

[CougarKing]

Anbar province again..

Reuters

Consumed by Islamic State, Iraq's Anbar province a key battleground again
Tue Oct 21, 2014 10:46am EDT

By Ahmed Rasheed, Saif Hameed and Ned Parker

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - In recent weeks, the world has watched the battle to save Syria’s border town of Kobani from Islamic State. But the radical jihadists have for longer been engulfing another strategically more vital target - Iraq’s western Anbar province and its road to Baghdad.

The vast desert region - where Sunni tribes rose up in 2006 and 2007 to drive out al-Qaeda with the Americans - has throughout 2014 been parcelled up, city by military camp, before the Iraqi government and U.S. forces could act.

Now Anbar's largest airbase Ain al-Asad, the Haditha Dam – a critical piece of infrastructure - and surrounding towns are encircled by Islamic State to the west from the Syrian border and to the east from militant-controlled sections of Ramadi.

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[CougarKing]

ISIS on the move again in Iraq:

Reuters

Islamic State militants seize Iraq village, press assault on Yazidis
Thu Oct 23, 2014 12:58pm EDT

By Saif Sameer and Ned Parker

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Islamic State wrested a Sunni Muslim village in western Iraq on Thursday from tribal defenders who put up weeks of fierce resistance, and the insurgents tightened a siege of the Yazidi minority on a mountain in the north.

The attacks showed Islamic State's continued operating resilience despite air strikes by U.S.-led coalition forces aimed at defeating the ultra-radical Sunni jihadist group, which has captured large expanses of Iraq and neighboring Syria, beheaded prisoners and massacred people from other religious communities, and declared a medieval-style caliphate.

The Albu Nimr tribe had been fending off Islamic State (IS) since early October but finally lost the village of Zauiyat albu Nimr in the western province of Anbar overnight on Thursday.

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[CougarKing]

Just how long will it take to turn the Iraqi Army into an effective fighting force so that next time, they don't abandon their Abrams tanks in the face of screaming ISIS fighters with just AK47s and RPGs?

Defense News

US Official: Iraq Army Not Ready To Repel Islamic State
Oct. 23, 2014 - 08:45PM  |  By JIM MICHAELS

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, FLA. — US airstrikes and Iraqi ground forces have blunted an Islamic State offensive in Iraq, but it will be months before Iraq can mount a sustained counteroffensive to take terrain back, a senior US military official said Thursday.

The official, who is involved in directing the military’s campaign against the militants, said Iraq’s security forces have been able to mount some limited counterattacks with the help of US airstrikes.

The official, who briefed reporters on the situation in Iraq, asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the strategy. The official did not say exactly how long it would take to rebuild Iraq’s forces so they could repel the militants, but indicated it would be less than a year.

Four Iraqi divisions collapsed when the Islamic State attacked Mosul in June, allowing militants to grab large swaths of the country.

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[CougarKing]

Yet another ISIS atrocity:

Military.com

Report: Islamic State Used Chlorine Gas on Iraqi Police

Stars and Stripes | Oct 24, 2014
The Islamic State group used chlorine gas against Iraqi police officers in what appears to be the first confirmed use of chemical weapons by the militants, according to a Washington Post report.

The attack on 11 Iraqi police occurred Sept. 15, about 50 miles north of Baghdad, according to an Iraqi defense ministry official cited by the Post.


The Iraqi police had been guarding a town under heavy assault for days when they saw IS fighters retreat from their position, according to the report. They heard a boom, then saw yellow smoke drift toward them.

The four doctors who later treated them said there was no question that they were attacked with chlorine gas, the Post reported. The police officers were rushed to a hospital in Balad, where they vomited and struggled to stand, according to the report. 

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[cryco]

Murdering thugs. I wonder what the Iraqis will do to them when the tide of this war will eventually turn (when the west sends in ground troupes)

 

[CougarKing]

The air campaign continues:

Reuters

U.S., allies stage 22 air strikes in Iraq: U.S. Central Command
Sat Oct 25, 2014 10:14am EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and its allies conducted 22 air strikes against Islamic State forces in Iraq on Friday and Saturday, the U.S. Central Command said.

U.S. warplanes also destroyed an Islamic State artillery piece near Kobani, Syria, officials said Saturday.

The 22 strikes in Iraq included attacks in the frequently targeted areas near the vital Mosul dam, the city of Fallujah and the northern city of Bayji, home of an oil refinery.


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[CougarKing]

Will an eventual ground victory in Iraq simply mean recapture of the ground lost to ISIS? Or capture or killing all its members in the region? Some will no doubt hide among the population for later attacks.

Reuters

Iraqi security forces and Kurds gain ground against Islamic State
Sat Oct 25, 2014 6:55pm EDT

By Ahmed Rasheed and Isabel Coles

BAGHDAD/ARBIL Iraq (Reuters) - Iraqi government forces and Shi'ite militias seized control of the strategic town of Jurf al-Sakhar near Baghdad from Islamic State on Saturday and Kurdish fighters made gains in the north after heavy coalition air strikes against the Sunni militants.

Iraqi troops and their Shi'ite allies broke the grip of Islamic State in Jurf al-Sakhar after months of fighting against insurgents determined to march on the capital.

"Our forces with the support of the volunteers are in total control over Jurf al-Sakhar now and the terrorists fled to the southwest areas of the town," a spokesman for security forces there said.

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[CougarKing]

ISIS MANPADS?

Don't most airlines headed from Europe to Asia or vice-versa already avoid the Middle East altogether in their flight plans?

Defense News

German Spies Warn Islamic State Has Anti-Aircraft Rockets, Report Says
Oct. 26, 2014 - 12:14PM  |  By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE 

BERLIN — Germany’s intelligence service believes Islamic State jihadist fighters in northern Iraq possess anti-aircraft weapons that could take down passenger jets, according to a newspaper report Sunday.

The BND federal intelligence service had told German lawmakers about its suspicion in a confidential briefing late last week, reported the Bild am Sonntag newspaper without citing named sources.

In the briefing, the BND reportedly warned that IS fighters possess portable rocket launchers captured from Syrian army stocks. Some dated from the 1970s, while others were modern and advanced.

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[CougarKing]

It should be clear the Iraqi forces and Shia militia wouldn't have been able to do this without US-coalition airpower:

Military.com

Iraqi Troops Retake Control of Sunni Town from Islamic State

Associated Press | Oct 26, 2014

Iraqi soldiers backed by Shiite militiamen retook control Sunday of a Sunni town seized previously by Islamic militants, said an Iraqi official and state-run TV, a rare victory for Iraqi security forces that have been battling to regain areas lost to the militants.

The provincial official said that government forces entered Jurf al-Sakhar, which fell to fighters from the Islamic State group in late July.

Col. Muthana Khalid, spokesman of the Babil provincial police, said the battle over the town left dozens of militants dead or wounded.

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[CougarKing]

...while resistance by ISIS fighters continues to remain fierce...

Reuters

Suicide bomber kills 27 militiamen south of Iraqi capital
Mon Oct 27, 2014 12:41pm EDT

By Michael Georgy

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed at least 27 Shi'ite militiamen on the outskirts of the Iraqi town of Jurf al-Sakhar on Monday after security forces pushed Islamic State militants out of the area over the weekend, army and police sources said.

The attacker, driving a Humvee vehicle packed with explosives and likely stolen from defeated government troops, also wounded 60 Shi'ite militiamen, who had helped government forces retake the town just south of the capital.

Holding Jurf al-Sakhar is critical for Iraqi security forces who finally managed to drive out the Sunni insurgents after months of fighting.

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[CougarKing]

full article: A month ago, ISIS’s advance looked unstoppable. Now it’s been stopped.

Source for article and map below: Vox.com

  ISIS's defeats in Iraq are more important than its gains

 

[CougarKing]

Iraqi Kurds helping their Syrian cousins:

Reuters

Iraqi peshmerga poised to join battle against Islamic State in Syria
Wed Oct 29, 2014 9:02am EDT

By Dasha Afanasieva and Alexander Dziadosz

SURUC Turkey/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Iraqi peshmerga fighters arrived in southeastern Turkey on Wednesday en route for the Syrian town of Kobani to try to help fellow Kurds break an Islamic State siege which has defied U.S.-led air strikes.

Kobani, on the border with Turkey, has been under assault from Islamic State militants for more than a month and its fate has become a test of the U.S.-led coalition's ability to combat the Sunni insurgents.

Weeks of air strikes on Islamic State positions around Kobani and the deaths of hundreds of their fighters have failed to break the siege. Syrian Kurds and their international allies hope the arrival of the peshmerga, along with heavier weapons, can turn the tide.

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[CougarKing]

Another update: the French carrier Charles de Gaulle joining Iraq strikes next year?

Defens-aero.com

Le porte-avions Charles de Gaulle s’apprêterait à entrer en action en Irak début 2015
1 Novembre 2014

Au fil des semaines et des mois, l'opération Chammal en Irak se renforce et devient une opération où la France s'y consacre pleinement puisqu'elle déploie neuf Rafale de l'Armée de l'Air, un ravitailleur C-135FR, un avion de patrouille maritime Atlantique 2 de la Marine Nationale, la frégate antiaérienne Jean Bart, ainsi que des forces spéciales afin d'entraîner les forces armées irakiennes avec le matériel que la France leur a livré. Mais cet engagement pourrait encore s’accroître dans les semaines à venir, avec l'arrivée dans le golfe arabo-persique du porte-avions français Charles de Gaulle.

En effet, selon le quotidien français Le Télégramme, qui révèle l'information dans un article au sujet des coupes budgétaires, "le porte-avions Charles-de-Gaulle qui se prépare en secret à un appareillage vers le Golfe arabo-persique", devrait arriver sur zone "au début de 2015".

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[CougarKing]

Too bad the Kiwis didn't replace their Skyhawks and did away with their fighter arm so airpower isnt an option for them...

Defense News

New Zealand Rules Out Combat Troops To Fight Islamic State
Nov. 5, 2014 - 04:39PM  |  By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND — New Zealand will not send combat troops to battle the Islamic State (IS) group but is prepared to help boost the Iraqi military’s capacity to fight the jihadists, Prime Minister John Key said Wednesday.

Key unveiled a range of policies aimed at countering the threat from IS both at home and abroad, including boosting domestic intelligence agencies to guard against a Canada-style attack.

He said the emergence of IS, also known as ISIS or ISIL, was a “game changer” for Western nations, because it not only destabilized the Middle East but also increased the risk of domestic attacks by radicalized extremists.

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[CougarKing]

The Al-Nusra group is now a new target in the coalition air campaign:

Reuters

U.S.-led air strikes hit al Qaeda affiliate in Syria
Thu Nov 6, 2014 9:35am EST

AMMAN (Reuters) - Air strikes by a U.S.-led coalition set up to fight Islamic State hit the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front in northwest Syria overnight, rebels and residents said on Thursday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, said the strikes were on an office and a vehicle in Idlib province in northwest Syria, where last week the group routed Western-backed Syrian rebels.

Residents said one strike targeted a car used by Nusra commanders, near an internet cafe in the Nusra-controlled town of Sarmada close to the Turkish border.

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[CougarKing]

More US troops headed to Iraq:

Defense News

Obama Authorizes 1,500 More US Troops for Iraq
Nov. 7, 2014 - 06:06PM  |  By Michelle Tan and Andrew Tilghman Staff writers 

President Obama on Friday authorized up to 1,500 more U.S. troops to join the training and advise-and-assist mission in Iraq against Islamic militants, the White House announced.

The new mission will greatly expand the geographical reach of the U.S. mission that until now has been limited to the Baghdad area and the Kurdish city of Irbil, and is aimed at pushing back into areas that had been overrun earlier this year by Islamic State militants.

“This is a change in geography. We are going to now put advisory teams out in what we consider to be expeditionary geography where the Iraqis are taking the fight to the enemy,” Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said Friday.

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[CougarKing]

Where could ISIS leader Baghdadi be hiding?

Reuters

Iraqi military reach Baiji; Baghdadi's fate unclear
BY AHMED RASHEED
BAGHDAD Sun Nov 9, 2014 5:32pm ES

(Reuters) - Iraqi military forces reached the center of the northern city of Baiji on Sunday in an effort to break an Islamic State siege of the country's biggest refinery, triggering fierce clashes with the militants, according to an army colonel and a witness.

Separately, contradictory reports emerged over the fate of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi after U.S.-led air strikes against the group in at least two locations in Iraq on Friday night.

The United States said it had no information to indicate Baghdadi had been hit. State television cited reports that Baghdadi had been wounded. It gave no further details.

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