[] I/III. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/08/kurdish-forces-claim-control-mosul-dam-2014818174534291467.html Iraqi and Kurdish forces recapture Mosul [It appears that a lot will depend on whether and how quickly a government of national reconciliation is put in place in the wake of the eventual unmourned demise of the grossly sectarian regime led by al-Maliki] I/III.Iraqi and Kurdish forces recapture Mosul dam US president hails operation by Peshmerga and Iraqi troops as a "major step forward" against Islamic State group. Last updated: 19 Aug 2014 12:03
Kurdish and Iraqi government forces have taken control of the Mosul dam from the Islamic State group, after days of fighting aided by multiple air strikes from US jets and drones. Barack Obama, the US president, announced the "major step forward" to Americans on Monday night, and hailed co-operation between the government and Kurdish forces as an example of how to combat the Islamic State. He also pledged a long-term US mission to defeat the group. The advance of the Kurdish fighters and about 120 Iraqi soldiers has been aided by continuous US air strikes. US aircraft have carried out 35 strikes against Islamic State targets over the past three days, destroying more than 90 targets, the Pentagon said on Monday. Drones and fighter, bomber and attack jets "eliminated" fighters' positions in the battle for the dam, Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said. "In all, we destroyed over 90 targets including a range of vehicles, equipment and fighting positions," he added in a statement. "Iraqi forces have cleared the dam and are working to further expand their area of control." The recapture of the entire Mosul dam complex on the Tigris river and the territory surrounding its reservoir would be a significant victory against the Islamic State group, which seized large swaths of northern and western Iraq this summer. Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr, reporting from east of Mosul, said that while some Iraqi government forces were involved in the operation, their number was felt by the Peshmerga to be "insignificant". She added: "Peshmerga commanders tell us that they have no intention of pushing towards the stronghold of the Islamic state group. They would be ready to do so - only if there is an agreement among Iraq's communities." The Iraqi army launched an operation on Tuesday to drive the Islamic State fighters out of Tikrit, which is the hometown of former president Saddam Hussein. Our correspondent reported that the Iraqi army is trying to advance to the provincial capital of Salahadin and that there were heavy clashes taking place 10 kilometres southwest of Tikrit. *Obama address* In his address Obama repeated his support for new Iraqi Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi's attempts to form a more inclusive government, but warned he must act quickly to undercut support for the radicals. "I was impressed in my conversation with him about his vision for an inclusive government but they've got to get this done because the wolf's at the door," he told reporters. "In order for them to be credible with the Iraqi people, they're going to have to put behind some of the old practices and actually create a credible united government. "Our goal is to have effective partners on the ground. And if we have effective partners on the ground, mission creep is much less likely," promising a joint "counter-terrorism" strategy with Iraq and US allies. The Islamic State meanwhile said it would retaliate against the US. In an online video statement, reported by the Reuters news agency, the group said it would attack Americans "in any place" and that it would "drown all of you in blood". II/III. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/08/iraq-tikrit-islamic-state-201481991319267358.html Iraq army advances towards rebel-held Tikrit Government forces launch operation to retake Tikrit from Islamic State fighters day after Mosul dam is recaptured. Last updated: 19 Aug 2014 16:40 Tikrit fell to Islamic State fighters on June 11 as the group advanced in Iraq's north [Reuters] Iraqi forces have launched an operation to retake Tikrit, the hometown of toppled president Saddam Hussein, from Islamic State fighters. Al Jazeera sources reported that the troops were advancing from the south and southwest and heavy clashes with the armed group were taking place 10km from the the city, the capital of Salaheddin province and about 200km north of Baghdad. According to the Reuters news agency, clashes were confined to the suburbs of the city as Iraqi forces halted their advance in the face of heavy fighting. Tikrit fell to the group formerly known as ISIL on June 11 and has since been controlled mostly by Sunni armed groups, including former members of Saddam's ruling Baath party. "We have to remember Tikrit is an urban city so there's going to be fighting in urban areas. The army had abandoned their positions in much of the Sunni heartland in June when the IS group took control," Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr reported from Erbil. "There's a real risk of this becoming a Sunni-Shia war because the Iraqi army now is dominated by Shia and they're getting the support of Shia militias," she added. The Iraqi advance from the south was slowed down by landmines, roadside bombs and Islamic State snipers, an army major and a police captain told Reuters. Qassim Atta, a spokesman of the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, earlier told Iraqi state television that 40 roadside bombs had been defused. The offensive in Tikrit came a day after Kurdish Peshmerga forces regained control over the strategic Mosul dam from Islamic State fighters after days of fighting, aided by dozens of air strikes from US jets and drones in the north. Islamic State fighters have seized Iraq's second city, Mosul, and control large swaths of land in northern Iraq and in neighbouring Syria. *Aid operation* Also on Tuesday, the UN refugee agency announced that it was launching a major aid operation to get supplies to more than half a million people displaced by fighting in northern Iraq. A four-day airlift of tents and other goods will begin on Wednesday to Erbil from Aqaba in Jordan, followed by road convoys from Turkey and Jordan and sea shipments from Dubai via Iran over the next 10 days, UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards said. "This is a very, very significant aid push and certainly one of the largest I can recall in quite a while," Edwards said in Geneva. "This is a major humanitarian crisis and disaster. It continues to affect many people." III. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-28849333 19 August 2014 Last updated at 13:46 Iraq crisis: UN launches new aid effort in north Iraq The BBC's Jim Muir at the Mosul dam: "The dam seems to be back in safe hands" The United Nations agency for refugees is launching a major aid operation to reach more than half a million people displaced by fighting in northern Iraq. Tents and other goods will be sent to the Kurdish city of Irbil via air, road and sea, the UNHCR said. Meanwhile a BBC correspondent at the strategically important Mosul Dam says Kurdish and Iraqi forces have retaken it from Islamic State (IS) militants. IS forces have captured large parts of northern Iraq in recent weeks. "UNHCR is this week launching one of its largest aid pushes," the agency's spokesman Adrian Edwards told reporters. Aid will first be sent by air from Jordan, beginning on Wednesday. More goods will be sent by road from Turkey, and by sea from Dubai and Iran. "This is a major humanitarian crisis and disaster, and it continues to affect very large numbers of people," Mr Edwards said. An estimated 1.2 million Iraqis have been displaced so far in 2014, according to the UN agency - more than 500,000 from fighting in the Anbar region, and another 600,000 displaced from conflicts around Mosul and more recently Sinjar. "Conditions remain desperate for those without access to suitable shelter - people struggling to find food and water to feed their families, and those without access to primary medical care," the organisation said in a statement. Dam recaptured Meanwhile Western powers are stepping up efforts to stem the advance of IS by supporting Kurdish and Iraqi government forces in northern Iraq. On Monday, US President Barack Obama said that the Mosul Dam in northern Iraq had been recaptured by Kurdish forces, a key gain against the militants. US President Barack Obama says IS militants are "a threat to all Iraqis and the entire region" Mr Obama said the US helped in the operation by launching air strikes targeting IS positions around the dam, Iraq's largest. Recapturing the dam has been a key focus of the last few days, due to warnings of catastrophic ramifications if the dam came under the control of IS militants who did not have the capabilities to carry out essential maintenance work on it. According to US assessments, the dam has the potential to cause severe flooding in Mosul, and possibly even affect areas as far south as Baghdad. The BBC's Jim Muir, who is at the dam complex, says that after several days of fighting, it is now firmly in the hands of Kurdish and Iraqi government forces. However, hostilities are not completely over in the area, our correspondent reports. He says the roadside and entrances to the complex are littered with debris and wreckage following American air strikes, as well as the remains of explosives left behind by IS militants. A short distance away to the south west, gunfire and explosives have been sending smoke into the sky as Kurdish forces try to push their front lines further into the low hills nearby, he says. -- -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Green Youth Movement" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. 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