August 18, 2015
REPORTS FROM IRAQ
The Special Investigative Committee of the Council of Representatives (CoR) issued its report about the fall of Mosul on Sunday. The report cited 36 Iraqi politicians and security and defense leaders as responsible for what happened in Mosul. The report recommended that these people be referred to the courts for further investigation.
News stories in June 2014 attributed Mosul’s fall to a surprise attack and a collapse of Iraqi military units, but our own evaluation at the time was that this was largely an inside job by Baathists and other anti-government Iraqis. Daesh already had a large measure of control in Mosul even before June 2014 with the connivance of some politicians and military leaders and the incompetence of others. Some of them even had contacts with Daesh and other armed groups in Mosul.
Former PM Maliki was first on the list. He defended himself by saying the fall of Mosul was arranged between Ankara and Erbil. His bloc in the CoR says the Special Investigative Committee was partisan and not neutral. Legalities aside, it’s hard to avoid blame when one-third of the country was lost on your watch.
ANBAR
Falluja
Iraqi forces supported by the IAF killed 3 Daesh terrorists; they also destroyed 2 car bombs and defused 25 IEDs. [IWMC Report]
Daesh Daily comment. It is a standard Daesh tactic to slow the advancement of Iraqi forces by planting IEDs. As Iraqi units move further into Falluja and Ramadi, the number of IEDs needing to be dismantled will continue growing.
Iraqi forces stopped a 5-car-bomb Daesh attack while advancing in Al-Humaira in Qarma. [IWMC Report] Baghdad Operations Command killed 5 terrorists and injured 1 and destroyed a vehicle and a rocket launcher in Qarma. [IWMC Report] It also destroyed a Daesh hideout and killed a Daesh terrorist in Subaihat in Qarma. [IWMC Report]
Ramadi
The spokesman of Anbar’s Governor says Iraqi forces captured the Anbar Traffic Police Directorate and Al-Zaytoon in the 5 Kilo area west of Ramadi. He also says Iraqi forces are advancing in Al-Malaab west of the city and in Al-Tameem to the south and are close to the 20 Street inside Ramadi. [8th Day] The deputy chairman of Anbar GC says the Iraqi Army’s 16th Division, supported by tribal fighters and PMFs, captured large areas around Al-Qassem Bridge south of Ramadi and will capture the rest of the bridge area in the next few hours. [Al-Maalomah] He also says Iraqi forces are advancing in the western part of Ramadi city and are preparing for a major attack to reach the city center. [Al-Maalomah] Anbar Operations Command says 30 Daesh terrorists were killed and 14 of their vehicles destroyed in the battles in west Ramadi. [Al-Ghad]
The IFP commander says Iraqi forces killed 11 Daesh fighters, defused 13 IEDs, and captured 3 buildings east of Ramadi. [Al-Sumaria]
A security source says the commander of the IFP’s 2nd Brigade was shot and wounded by a Daesh sniper in the battles in east Ramadi. [Al-Sumaria]
The IFP stopped a Daesh attack on Al-Madhiq east of Ramadi. Iraqi forces also killed 9 terrorists and destroyed 8 IEDs in Hsaiba. [IWMC Report]
Elsewhere in Anbar
The Anbar Governor says an “Anbar Liberation Conference” will be held tomorrow in Baghdad to discuss the security and humanitarian issues in Anbar and how to keep the momentum and accelerate the liberation process. He says many international invitees will attend the conference in addition to Iraqi officials. [Al-Mada]
A security source says Daesh executed 2 civilians in Rawa district in west Anbar, accusing them of cooperating with the Iraqi security forces. [Al-Baghdadia]
Daesh publishes photos of shelling Iraqi forces in Haditha. [Just Paste]
A source in Anbar Operations Command says 7 Daesh terrorists were killed in a Coalition airstrike on Al-Qa’im in far west Anbar. [Al-Baghdadia]
Local sources say a civilian was killed and 5 injured, including 2 children, in the Coalition’s bombing of Al-Qa’im. [Al-Gharbiya]
SALAHUDDIN
The Mayor of Baiji says Iraqi forces recaptured all the areas taken by Daesh in the last few days. [Al-Baghdadia]
The Badr militia commander says Daesh was able to make a “breach” in Baiji because Iraqi security forces were busy protecting the demonstrations. He also says Iraqi forces are foiling continuous attacks by Daesh on Al-Allas oil field. [Al-Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment: What do the military, the PMFs and the militias have to do with protecting the demonstrations?
Salahuddin Operations Command re-captured the Albu Jarad area near Baiji refinery and cleared it of IEDs. [IWMC Report]
A video of the PMFs destroying a Daesh car bomb in Abu Jarad. [YouTube]
A security source says a PMF sniper in Baiji shot and killed a Daesh Hisbah official responsible for Salahuddin. [Al-Sumaria]
Daesh publishes photos of tribes pledging allegiance in Shirqat. [Dump]
The MoD says Iraqi forces, supported by the IAA and IAF, launched a major attack on Jazeera Samarra towards Thirthar. [MoD website] This is in effect an attack on Daesh’s supply line.
The Governor of Salahuddin asks PM Abadi to intervene to learn what happened to Watban Ibrahim’s wife, who disappeared with 2 other people after burying her husband in Ghazaliya in west Baghdad. Watban was Saddam’s half-brother, who died in prison last week. [Iraq Press]
A video of a Kata’eb Hezbollah sniper killing a Daesh fighter. [Facebook]
BAGHDAD
PM Abadi says reducing the number of ministries doesn’t target any particular political party. The PM reduced the number of ministries from 33 to 22 on Sunday. [Al-Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Apparently some are being eliminated and others merged. This in itself should reduce the opportunities for corruption.
The Iraqi Minister of Oil, Adel Abdel Madhi, says corruption and mismanagement have cost Iraq over 400 billion dollars since 2003. He says Iraqi government employees cost more than half the annual budget, yet work efficacy is only 6%, which makes the Iraqi government a social welfare entity instead of an efficient service and security provider. [Iraq Press]
DaeshDaily comment. Amen to all of that. Public service is not the primary motive for staffing decisions in Iraq, another major reason for the corruption. Hiring people to give them salaries and retain political support is a larger objective. This has produced an ongoing policy of excessive hiring and makes the government a vast jobs program, even as ministries lack some of the specialized skills they actually need. Many government employees sit around a lot because there is not enough work to do, one reason for the low “efficacy” rate. This applies equally in the KRG. The huge drop in government oil revenues may be exposing these policies as unsustainable.
The chairman of the Integrity Committee in the CoR survived an IED explosion on his convoy in west Baghdad. One of his bodyguards was killed and several others injured in the attack. [8th Day]
The Iraq Minister of Defense says the military commanders cited in the CoR report about the fall of Mosul will be referred to the military courts. [Al-Sumaria]
Baghdad Operations Command arrested a terrorist in Dora in south Baghdad, confiscating an explosives belt and 2 IEDs. [IWMC Report]
The IAA conducted 53 sorties and the IAF 8. (Details in other stories)
The Coalition conducted 12 sorties killing 60 terrorists and destroyed 3 vehicles and 27 Daesh facilities and 3 tunnels. [IWMC Report]
According to security sources:
– An IED exploded in Sadr City in east Baghdad, killing a civilian and injuring 2. [Al-Baghdadia]
– An IED exploded on a police patrol in Mada’in in south Baghdad, injuring 2 policemen. [Al-Sumaria]
– Two people were killed and 7 injured in an IED explosion in Mahmudiya in south Baghdad. [Iraq Press]
– A policeman was killed and 3 injured when an IED exploded on their patrol in Yusufiyah in south Baghdad. [Al-Baghdadia]
– A civilian was killed and 3 injured in an IED explosion in Latifiya in south Baghdad. [Al-Baghdadia]
– Two people were killed and 9 injured in an IED explosion in Al-Duwanim in southwest Baghdad. [Iraq Press]
– An IED exploded in Bayaa in southwest Baghdad, killing a civilian and injuring 2. [Al-Baghdadia]
– An IED exploded in Saidiya in southwest Baghdad, injuring a civilian. [Al-Sumaria]
DIYALA
The Mayor of Abu Saida subdistrict says Iraqi security forces found a Daesh training camp in Al-Mukhaisa village and confiscated weapons and explosives. He says terrorists in the camp were responsible for many recent attacks on Diyala civilians. [Al-Sumaria] He also says the camp had an explosives workshop that had made 150 IEDs every month. [Buratha]
Local sources say Shia militias burned Sunni orchards in Al-Khalis. [Al-Gharbiya]
The Chairman of the security committee in Diyala GC says security forces arrested 2 suspects wanted on terrorism charges. [Al-Sumaria]
A security source says the IFP killed a Daesh terrorist and arrested 2 others in Imam Wees northeast of Baquba. [Al-Baghdadia] Diyala Police commander says his troops clashed with Daesh in Imam Wees and destroyed a car bomb and another vehicle. [Al-Etejah]
A security source says an IED exploded in Khan Bani Saad south of Baquba, killing a civilian and injuring 2. [Al-Baghdadia]
A security source says unknown armed men shot and killed a former officer in the Iraqi Army in north Baquba. [Al-Baghdadia]
A security source says unknown armed men shot and killed 2 civilians working in a car workshop in Muqdadiya. [Al-Baghdadia]
A security source says Balad Ruz arrested one of the most notable Daesh financers in the city. [Al-Etejah]
A security source says the Coalition bombed Daesh in areas northeast of Baquba, killing 21 terrorists. [Xendan]
KIRKUK
IWMC says the Daesh wali of Kirkuk was killed with several other terrorists in a Coalition airstrike on Al-Riyadh west of Kirkuk. [PUKMedia]
NINEWA
A KDP official says Daesh stoned 5 women to death in Al-Ghizlani camp in Mosul. [Al-Sumaria]
A local source says Daesh executed another Sunni imam,, in Qayara south of Mosul. [PUKMedia]
A source in Ninewa says Daesh gave a 60-day ultimatum to merchants in Mosul to get rid of their frozen chicken and replace it with fresh chicken for health reasons. [Al-Mada]
A PUK official says Coalition airstrikes on Mosul killed 2 Daesh local emirs in Qayara in addition to dozens of other terrorists on Monday. [Karemlash] He also says the Coalition bombed Daesh in several areas near Tal Afar, killing 8 terrorists and injuring others. [PUKMedia]
A Yazidi singer joins the Sun Battalion, a military unit of 123 Yazidi girls who intend to participate in the fight against Daesh. [Iraq Press]
A Peshmerga commander says Kurdish forces stopped a Daesh attack on Al-Gwer, 35 km east of Mosul and 40 km west of Erbil, killing 5 terrorists. [BasNews]
A Peshmerga source says they also stopped a Daesh attack on Baashiqa in the Nineveh Plain last night. [Xendan]
OTHER GOVERNORATES
Kurdistan
Southern Iraq
Kerbala Police commander says the Intelligence Service captured a car bomb and arrested its driver in the Ain Al-Tamur district near Anbar. [Al-Mada] IWMC says security forces arrested 2 suspects wanted on terrorism charges and captured the car bomb in Ain Al-Tamur. [Al-Etejah]
REPORTS FROM SYRIA
Local activists say Daesh expanded its control to more areas in Al-Qusayr and Tadmur. [Rudaw]
DaeshDaily comment. Daesh seems to be giving higher priority to government-held areas while yielding in areas in far northern Syria they previously held. The planned safe zone along the northern border further limits their range, especially as they can’t match up with the Turks.
Local activists say Daesh kidnapped 73 Kurdish civilians in Al-Bab countryside in Syria. [Welati]
A Kurdish military source says the Coalition bombed Daesh in Tal Hamis south of Qamishli, where Daesh is fighting the YPG, killing and injuring many terrorists. Syrian jets also bombed Daesh, in Al-Shaddadi south of Hasaka. [BasNews]
A source in Kurdish security in Hasaka says they found 500 kg of explosives in areas captured recently from Daesh in Hasaka. [BasNews]
The spokesman for Al-Burkan Operations says the Coalition bombed Daesh south of Sarrin during the last 48 hours, killing 5 terrorists. [Welati]
Daesh publishes photos of cutting off hands of 3 men accused of theft. [Just Paste]
Daesh says it killed Al-Nusra’s security officer in Daraa. [Dump]
Daesh publishes segments of CNN report about Division 30 and threatens to kill them. [The Sham News]
Daesh says FSA’s vehicles advanced from Turkish lands towards their locations in Syria. [The Sham News]
More public beheadings. [The Sham News]
REPORTS FROM TURKEY
Daesh issues a video, “A Message to Turkey,” asking Turkish people to “repent” from supporting Erdogan and fight him, saying he sold the country to the PKK and the “crusaders”. [Rudaw]
The Daesh video message to Turkey. [The Sham News]
REPORTS FROM OTHER MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICAN COUNTRIES
Libya. The Arab League recommended a strategy to help Libya’s military in the fight against Daesh, but did not respond to the Libyan government request that they recommend airstrikes. [PUKMedia]
A Libyan source refutes the news about Daesh controlling the east coast in Derna and says their attack was stopped. [Al-Wasat]
More people are leaving their houses in Sirte to other areas after Daesh’s attack on the city. [Akhbar Libya]
Daesh publishes statistics about their military operations for the last lunar month. [Archive]
A collection of Daesh publications. [Just Paste]
Daesh news collection for today. [Just Paste] [Just Paste] [Just Paste]
Daesh audio newsletter in English. [Archive]
SOCIAL MEDIA SOURCES
Facebook Page of the Day
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Daesh Twitter Accounts of the Day
https://twitter.com/Mch0aXXAwg5atvP
https://twitter.com/plaisir_faire
* * * * * * * * * *
Acronyms
|
AHH |
Asa’eb Ahl Al-Haq |
|
COMSEC |
Council of Ministers Secretariat |
|
CoR |
Council Of Representatives (Iraqi Parliament) |
|
FSA |
Free Syrian Army |
|
GC |
Governorate (Provincial) Council |
|
GoI |
Government of Iraq |
|
IAA |
Iraqi Army Aviation |
|
IAF |
Iraqi Air Force |
|
IED |
Improvised Explosive Devise |
|
IFP |
Iraqi Federal Police |
|
IKR |
Iraqi Kurdistan Region |
|
IWMC |
Iraqi War Media Cell |
|
JOC |
Joint Operations Command |
|
KDP |
Kurdistan Democratic Party |
|
KH |
Kata’eb Hezbollah |
|
KM |
Kata’eb Al-Mosul |
|
KRG |
Kurdistan Regional Government |
|
MoD |
Ministry of Defense |
|
MoI |
Ministry of Interior |
|
MP |
Member of Parliament |
|
PKK |
Kurdistan Workers’ Party |
|
PM |
Prime Minister |
|
PUK |
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan |
|
PYD |
Democratic Union Party (Syria) |
|
YPG |
People’s Protection Units (Syria) |
