Tag: Iraq (page 12)

The U.S. launched airstrikes against ISIS today outside Irbil (Erbil.) Here's a bigger version of the map above from the Washington Post.

Obama is holding firm for now that no ground troops will return to Iraq.

“I will not allow the United States to be dragged into fighting another war in Iraq.” [More...]

Ten days ago, ISIS captured these members of the al Sha'etat tribe in Deir Ezzor, Syria. I thought they were going to be killed immediately but ISIS gave them a reprieve, allowing them to repent. Non violent photos of them when they were captured are here and after the reprieve here.

Apparently, many either didn't repent or repented then rescinded, because today ISIS reported and showed photos of their slaughter. They were beheaded, crucified or otherwise executed and the photos are disgusting. I'm not linking to the photos, but it's clear they are the same young men.

Also today, ISIS supporters deny killing Yazidi civilians or that ISIS intends to do so. [More...]

I really thought these Sunni al Sha'etat (aka Al Sh'etat or Sh’ytat or Shu'aytat) Tribe members in Deir Ezzor, Syria were done for. Their tribe had an agreement with ISIS which it claimed ISIS broke, and they expelled ISIS, killing 9 or 11 ISIS members. ISIS returned with its typical furor, and seized dozens of tribe members, mostly young men. It didn't kill them right away but put them in jail. ISIS released these (non-violent) images of their capture. (The towns were Abu Hamam, Kashkiyeh and Ghranij, in Deir Ezzor.)

There were unofficial reports the men were going to face a Sharia Court for treason, and that the penalty for treason is death, or the hacking off of an arm and a leg on opposite sides of the body.

Today, ISIS announced they were spared by order of the Khalifah, and given the chance to repent and pledge allegiance to ISIS. The photo announcement is here. They look much happier now. (And cleaner, maybe ISIS let them take showers and gave them fresh clothes.)[More...]

I'm going to continue using ISIS instead of IS, at least for now.

The new leader of the caliphate Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Husayni al-Qurashi al-Baghdadi, has sent out “A Message to the Mujahidin and the Muslim Ummah in the Month of Ramadan” from Amirul-Mu’minin Abu Bakr al-Husayni al-Qurashi al-Baghdadi." The English version is here.

Here's a news article describing it. It makes no reference to specific imminent attacks. It reads more like a recruiting announcement. It says the state is particularly looking for "“judges and those who have military and managerial and service skills, and doctors and engineers in all fields.”

Today there are reports ISIS has now taken the Syrian side of the Qaim border, Albu Kamal, also called Al-Bukamal. More news articles here and here. [More...]

Bump and Update: We have the answer. As I suggested below on June 23, it was the police and army forces, not ISIS, who killed the inmates being transferred from one prison in Hillah to another. Will the Wall St. Journal and others issue a correction? As of now, the WSJ article still headlines "At Least 81 Iraqis Killed in Sunni Rebel Attack on Convoy" and begins:

Sunni militants brought their campaign against the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki closer to Baghdad on Monday, attacking a police convoy just 20 miles from the center of the capital and triggering a shootout that left at least 81 people dead.

Original Post 6/23

Did major media, in a rush to get out breaking news, publish unreliable reports from one-sided sources and get it backwards? [More...]

President Obama is asking Congress for $500 million to arm and train "moderate" rebels in Syria.

An Obama national security aide said the $500 million should be used to help Syrian rebels topple Assad, while at the same time defeating militants who call themselves the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS.

“As we have said many times before, Assad has lost all legitimacy to rule Syria and must go,” Bernadette Meehan, a National Security Council spokeswoman, told McClatchy. “The request to Congress reflects our assessment of the time needed to launch such a program and our view that building the capacity of Syrians for stabilization and counterterrorism operations will be necessary both during the (current) conflict and after a negotiated settlement.”

This is just throwing money down the drain. [More...]

ISIS supporters say they now have the support of other al Qaida groups in the region, including Ansar al-Islam in Kirkuk and Ramadi, and at least some members of Jabhat al-Nusra. It's holding another celebratory parade in Haweija.

Syria, on the other hand, is not making friends with its air strikes. More than 50 civilians, including children were killed. Nor is Malaki, who says he supports Syria's efforts. At least the U.S. has expressed its displeasure.

ISIS/al-Qaida supporters hint the group won't be targeting Jordan or Saudi Arabia. It's next move will be in Lebanon. [More...]

ISIS held a victory parade in Mosul today. You can view all the photos here. It was a big turnout, and lasted into the evening. Noticeably absent from the photos: women. I saw one figure that looked like a female in all of them (to the right of the headlights) and given her trench coat and purse and black head scarf, I'm wondering if she wasn't a reporter.

ISIS got whacked by Syrian jets near Al-Qa'im and Rutbah today. They lost some men, including Sheikh Abdul Majeed al Otaibi (@OT_48 on Twitter). They also were able to take two towns south of Baghdad, Iskandariya and Mahmoudiya.

The U.S. has sent its first group of advisors to Iraq. Here's the transcript of the Defense Department briefing.[More...]

A new CBS poll finds 75% percent of Americans do not think the Iraq War was worth the cost in lives and money. This is 8% more than in 2011 when the U.S. withdrew from Iraq, and 30% higher than in August 2003.

Republicans, Democrats and independents alike view the Iraq war as not worth the costs.

A whopping 77% oppose sending troops back in now.

ISIS has taken over two more border crossings in Western Iraq, Turaibil (with Jordan) and al-Waleed (with Syria).

It now moves on to Haditha and its dam, which has a major hydroelectric power plant. It may also try to take Al-Asad, a large Iraqi air force base and the nearby town of Hit, before moving on to Baghdad.

Obama, in an interview Friday with Face the Nation that was aired today, says the U.S. military can't play "whack a mole" with every new terrorist threat that pops up. [More...]

The Financial Times reports that for two years, ISIS has been publishing annual reports (al-Naba) with detailed accounts of its operations -- just like General Motors or any other huge corporation.

It is not a corporation and does not have shareholders, but the military success and brutality of the jihadi group surging through Iraq have been recorded with the level of precision often reserved for company accounts.

ISIS' 400 page 2013 report is filled with statistics of the number and type of attacks it carried out and even the number of people it has converted to its cause. [More....]

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• Dozens killed in Kenya where Islamic militants set fire to a hotel.
• Pakistan launches air strikes in North Waziristan, killing 10 militants.
• Israel conducts air strikes in Gaza on military sites used by Hamas
• Syria intensifies airstrikes on ISIS bases
• ISIS takes another Iraqi town, Tal Afar, not far from Mosul.