Iraqi forces deployed intensively on the international highway in Anbar province after the arrival of military reinforcements to reduce the security breaches. However, eight people were killed and wounded by the Turkish shelling of the northern province of Dohuk in the Kurdistan region. Meanwhile, security sources revealed that the artillery of the Iraqi army and the fighter jets of the International Alliance target the strongholds of ISIS extremist group on the right bank of Mosul.
The source revealed that ISIS extremists relies in their defense on the explosion of motorcycles because of the narrowness of districts of Mousl’s right bank, as the residents of these districts resume their attempts to move into the areas controlled by the Iraqi security forces. It added that the security forces have so far recovered 62 areas on the right side with an area of 270 kilometers, saying that they managed to kill nearly 850 gunmen and detonate of 250 motorcycles for the past two and a half months."
Iraqi forces recaptured two locations in western Mosul on Thursday as they moved from a new direction targeting Islamic State militants at the Old City area. Federal Police chief Shaker Jawdat said in press statements were advancing from the northwestern axis towards Haramat area, and had recaptured Hassouna village and the “Nineveh gas lab”.
Iraq’s armed forces opened a new front against Islamic State in Mosul on Thursday, advancing on the militants’ enclave from the northwest, a military commander said. The army’s 9th Armoured Division and the Rapid Response units of the Interior Ministry were headed towards the city, he said. The attack would help the elite Counter-Terrorism Service (CTS) and Interior Ministry Federal Police troops who were painstakingly advancing from the south, he said.
In the same context, A limited military offensive launched Thursday to clear Anbar’s western desert areas from Islamic State militants, according to the province’s army leaders.
Maj. Gen. Mahmoud al-Falahi was quoted by Alsumaria News saying that army commando and police forces sat on a military offensive to purge the desert area which falls 160 kilometers to the west of Ramadi. The operation targets a space of 10 kilometers of that area.
Another operation is planned sooner for the desert area around the city of al-Rutba, which will be backed by tribal troops, according to Falahi.
Islamic State militants have held Anbar’s western towns of Annah, Qaim and Anbar since 2014. Fighter jets from the Iraqi army and the allied U.S.-led coalition have also regularly pounded IS locations in the province. Anbar’s military command previously launched a brief assault early January that managed to recapture some western villages before stopping again.
Local officials believe Islamic State is holding thousands of civilians at its western strongholds to use them as human shields against any future security offensive. The Iraqi government and army commanders say they will aim at IS havens in Anbar once it is finished with eliminating the group from Mosul, its biggest bastion in Iraq. IS has escalated its attacks against army and paramilitary forces in the province over the past few months, leaving several personnel dead.
The leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party Hoshyar Zebari, revealed the details of the Kurdish response over the document presented by President of the National Alliance Ammar al-Hakim, denying the accusations against him of holding an agreement with Kuwait individually. He said that he turned to hold the agreement after consultation with the government.
He added, "My accusation of the case of Khor Abdullah lies and fabrication, because Maliki's government and parliament at that time agreed to this agreement between Iraq and Kuwait, according to the UN Security Council binding the country."