February 26, 2016
Today’s Major Developments
Al-Sadr talks tough, pressures Al-Abadi on government reform.
Liberation campaign for Falluja city officially declared as Iraqi forces close in.
Coalition bombs Daesh in center of Hit.
Sheikh of large Ubaid tribe wants Al-Abadi to liberate Hawija before Mosul.
Saudi, UAE forces start arriving at Incirlik.
Shaddadi area in Hasaka starts recovery after SDF/YPG drive Daesh out.
Daesh video threatens Facebook, Twitter founders.
REPORTS FROM IRAQ
BAGHDAD
Political developments
Hundreds of people demonstrated in Baghdad, Diwaniya, Babel, Wasit, Kerbala, Najaf, Maysan, Dhi Qar, and Muthanna demanding a technocrat government and real reforms. [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Mada] [Sumaria]
Thousands of people attended Moqtada Al-Sadr’s demonstration event in Al-Tahrir Square in Baghdad. Sadr said in his speech that he denounces any corrupt person even if they are politically close to him. He said former governments created problems that the current government is still trying to solve. He threatened to take demonstrations across to the Green Zone if there are no real changes. He also says that no one in the government, even the Sadrist ministers, represent him. [Mada] [Sumaria] [Sumaria]
A video of the Sadrists demonstration in Baghdad [Rudaw]
The spokesman of the Sadrists, Salah Al-Ubaidi, says PM Abadi might not find a place for himself in the new government if he is not able to make changes and reforms. He also says the Sadrist ministers’ resignations are a “done deal”. He called today’s demonstration support for the reform and said Abadi should make use of this chance. [Sumaria] [Sumaria]
A Sadrist MP says that what Moqtada said about not having anyone representing him in the government is a chance for Abadi to change any Sadrist minister Abadi wants to change. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Politics in Iraq’s “unity government” are strange, as all major political parties (and others) are part of the government, and complicit in its faults and sins, yet almost all of them act like opposition instead of defending it. The national unity government is basically a national cover-up government.
The Sadrists have been part of that government for more than a decade now, to their own benefit, but Moqtada still rises frequently to pose as the leader of an alternative political bloc. They would have helped Iraq more if they had not demanded a share of the cake from the beginning. Like everyone else, the Sadrists are part of the political system in Iraq and they should acknowledge their considerable contributions to what went wrong instead of posturing against a Prime Minister who is working hard to overcome everyone else’s past mistakes.
Saad Al-Mutalibi, member of the Security Committee in Baghdad Provincial Council, accused political parties opposed to reforms in Iraq of masterminding the recent explosions in Baghdad. [Mawazin]
The US State Department and French Foreign Ministry condemned the Daesh attack on a mosque in Baghdad, reiterating both countries’ support of Iraq and its government’s efforts to liberate its territories from the terrorist group. [Ghad] [Ghad]
PM Al-Abadi’s office issued a statement refuting the statement by the UAE’s Minister of Foreign Affairs against the PMFs. The Minister said in Moscow that there is no difference between Daesh or Al-Qaeda or Badr or the PMFs or other Iranian backed militias. Al-Abadi says the PMF volunteers stood up to terrorism and protected the country and the Gulf from Daesh. [Mada] [Rudaw]
Iraq’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a refutation, saying it is unacceptable interference in Iraq’s internal affairs and an insult against the Iraqi armed forces. The Iraq Ministry says the PMF is an official establishment under the government umbrella and the Prime Minister’s command. [Rudaw]
Security developments
Security-related incidents reported:
North Baghdad
Daesh says its terrorists attacked an Iraqi Army position in Tarmiya District in northern Baghdad Governorate, killing or wounding many soldiers. The terrorists also detonated an IED, destroying a Humvee. [JustPaste]
Northeast Baghdad
An IED placed in a commercial area in Shaab, in Adhamiya, killed two civilians and wounded six. [Mada]
East Baghdad
An attempted armed robbery by men in PMF military uniforms on Palestine Street in east Baghdad was repelled by the building guards, who exchanged fire with the attackers, forcing them to leave, a police source said. [Sumaria]
Southeast Baghdad
An IED near a billiard hall in Jisr Diyala neighborhood killed two civilians and wounded seven. [Mada]
Two Ministry of Interior intelligence personnel were killed while attacking a Dash hideout in Wardiya, Mada’in District in southeastern Baghdad Governorate. The terrorists escaped the scene following the attack, a security source said. [Ghad]
South Baghdad
An IED targeted a police patrol in Hor Rijab, in Dora, killing one soldier and wounding four, pending more details. [Mada]
West Baghdad
An IED placed near a coffee shop in Iskan neighborhood killed one and wounded five. [Mada]
The bodies of two men shot to death were found in Abu Ghraib. [Maalomah]
Total Baghdad incidents reported: 8 (Not an overall total)
Coalition warplanes launched 16 airstrikes on targets in Iraq today, near Haditha, Kirkuk, Hit, Baghdadi, and Falluja in Anbar; Sinjar, Kasik, Sinjar, and Sultan Abdullah in Ninewa. The strikes destroyed tactical units, an oil storage facility, vehicles, bomb-rigging workshops, and fighting positions, Joint Operations Command said. [Mawazin]
ANBAR
Falluja
The Anbar Governor, in a joint press conference with the Anbar Operations Commander, announces the start of Falluja liberation operations. [Rasheed]
Iraqi Air Force planes attacked a checkpoint in Al-Mualimeen neighborhood in the middle of Falluja, killing three terrorists. [Baghdadia]
Iraqi forces repelled a major Daesh counter-attack on Albu Daaij, Albu Manahi, and Albu Hadhal villages north of Ameriyat Al-Falluja, liberated two days earlier, killing 41 Daesh fighters and destroying a large quantity of equipment, according to General Al-Mahalawi, commander of Anbar Operations (AOC). Coalition and Iraqi warplanes, as well as army helicopters, provided the air cover. [Sumaria]
IWMC and Joint Operations Command announced the start of the liberation operation for Falluja city. It said that 8th and 30th army brigades are advancing towards their planned objectives under heavy air cover. It added that the advance was through Albu Daaij and Albu Manahi from the west and south, with participation of Qarma battalion and Rapid Deployment forces, while the 30th brigade liberated and advanced through Albu Harrat. One officer and one soldier were killed, and the Commander of the 30th brigade’s 3rd battalion was wounded. Daesh lost 30 men, 10 hideouts, a tunnel, and several shelters, while 100 IEDs were destroyed. [Buratha]
Col. Mohammed Murdhi Al-Jumaili, commander of the 1st battalion of Qarma tribal mobilization, said that joint forces initiated a wide scale military campaign in Nuaimiya, killing 27 Daesh terrorists and destroying three trucks with 23mm machine guns. He added that army advances in Hitawiyeen and Nuaimiya aim to close down Daesh in Falluja from the southeast. [Mada]
Al-Jumaili also said that his forces liberated the Water Department of Nuaimiya southeast of Falluja and raised the Iraqi flag thereon, after killing large number of terrorists. [Maalomah]
Fighting broke out between Daesh and the joint forces backed by Coalition and Iraqi warplanes in Fahailat village south of Falluja, said Lt. Col. Aref Al-Janabi, the commander of Ameriyat Al-Falluja police. He said “tens” of Daesh terrorists were killed and large quantities of weapons captured, and that the fighting is still on. [Sumaria]
Al-Janabi also said Daesh shelled Ameriyat Al-Falluja city with over 100 rockets and mortar shells, killing 2 civilians and wounding 7, and causing considerable damage. [Sumaria]
General Al-Mahalawi said that his units killed 14 Daesh terrorists after attacking Daesh positions in Fahailat, Hraymat, and Albu Assi in Ameriyat Al-Falluja, saying that the operation aims to clear the area around Ameriyat Al-Falluja to prevent Daesh from shelling civilians. [BasNews]
Joint Operations Command said Iraqi Sukhois bombed Fahailat, Albu Ali Al-Jassim, and Albu Assi, destroying 12 Daesh centers. [AIN]
Coalition warplanes initiated 13 raids in Ameriyat Al-Falluja, killing 16 terrorists and destroying a supply line, a tunnel, and a mortar position, JOC said. [AIN]
Daesh says its terrorists, for the second day in a row, stopped an Iraqi Army and tribal fighters attack in areas near Ameriyat Al-Falluja, destroying 3 Humvees, a bulldozer and an Abrams tank and killing or wounding many Iraqi fighters. Daesh says the clashes are still going on. [JustPaste]
Daesh issues a video of battles near Ameriyat Al-Falluja. [A3maq]
Conflicting news spread around about negotiations between Daesh and the army to evacuate Qarma peacefully. As a security source confirmed the news, Anbar Provincial Council denied such stories, calling them impossible. The PMF, through Badr Militia, rejected any such negotiations. [Mawazin]
Ramadi
A security source says the Iraqi Army’s 8th Division stopped a Daesh attack near Al-Salam intersection near Habbaniya, killing more than 100 terrorists and destroying 15 hideouts and 10 vehicle bombs. [PUKMedia]
Ghassan Al-Ethawi, commander of the tribal forces north of Ramadi, said that joint forces (army, police, and tribal fighters) targeted Daesh gatherings in Albu Bali and Albu Ubaid, killing 40 of them and cutting off their supply lines. He added that there are about 70 Daesh terrorists in this area holding over 170 families as human shields. [Mada]
Ali Al-Dulaimi, Chairman of Khaldiya subdistrict council, said Daesh has lost 160 men in the past week from battles in Hamdhiya, Albu Ubaid, and Albu Shijil east of Ramadi, many of Arab and foreign nationalities. [Maalomah]
DaeshDaily comment. A lot of Iraqi Daesh fighters know the game is almost up, and local Daesh recruitment has not done well for some time. The risks of battle, and the casualties, have thus fallen more heavily on foreign fighters, who can’t just go home and who could be executed by Daesh for leaving the battlefield or trying to escape.
Suhaib Al-Rawi, Governor of Anbar, said 600 families have returned to their home areas in Siddiqiya east of Ramadi, after mines and IEDs were cleared from the area and basic services restored. He said army troops, municipal personnel, and volunteers are working around the clock to have all families gradually return to their areas. [BasNews]
A video of the Friday prayer in Ramadi led by the chairman of Sunni Endowment, Abdullatif Al-Hamaim [YouTube]
Engineering units of the 9th armored division dismantled three Daesh rocket launching platforms in Hamdhiya, east of Ramadi. [Mada]
A video of Iraqi forces clearing Sajariya. [Harbi]
IWMC said that Rapid Intervention forces, with collaboration from local citizens in Sufiya east of Ramadi, found an explosives storehouse containing over 500 IEDs of various sizes. [Maalomah]
Daesh says its terrorists destroyed an Iraqi Army Abrams tank near the Japanese Bridge east of Ramadi (photos). [A3maq] [JustPaste]
IFP Commander, General Jawdat, said the 18th IFP brigade repelled a Daesh attack on Al-Silaijiya village west of Ramadi, destroying two car bombs. [Mawazin]
Hit/Haditha
The Iraqi flag was raised over the Al-Kubaisi building in downtown Hit, causing confusion among Daesh terrorists, the IWMC said. [Buratha]
A security source said that a Coalition warplane attacked a Daesh gathering in the middle of Hit, killing 23. [Baghdadia] Coalition warplanes also destroyed an oil tank in Hit, the JOC said. [AIN]
A local source says unknown armed men shot and killed 2 Daesh members near Al-Ghafour mosque in east Hit. [Harbi]
Artillery shelling by the army on the Al-Rab’i area near Hit killed and wounded 8 terrorists, including a Saudi national, according to Jazeera Operations Command. [Maalomah]
Friction between the bodyguards of the Commander of Jazeera Operations Nassir Al-Ghannam and the Al-Buraq forces of the PMF reached an exchange of fire between the two when the PMF refused to hand over a Daesh drone shot down by the PMFs over Baghdadi to the army. [Mawqif]
Daesh publishes photos of the Friday prayers in a mosque in Kubaisa. [JustPaste]
DaeshDaily comment. Just to show that all is well in the caliphate (especially when it’s not).
Western Anbar
AOC said Iraqi Army Aviation helicopters attacked a house in the middle of Rutba, where major Daesh leaders were meeting, killing 15 people including major leaders. Maalomah]
Daesh issues a video of the destroyed municipal building in Al-Qa’im. Coalition warplanes bombed the building Wednesday night. [A3maq]
SALAHUDDIN
Shirqat
A Coalition airstrike on Shirqat destroyed a Daesh mortar position according to the JOC. [AIN]
Baiji
A security source said Army helicopters targeted Daesh gatherings in Sukaria west of Siniya killing “tens” of them and destroying 4 vehicles and 3 positions. [Mada]
According to the IFP Commander, General Jawdat, his 1st Battalion of the IFP destroyed a car bomb that approached its defense line in Siniya, while the 20th brigade repelled a Daesh attack in Ajeel, killing 28 terrorists and destroying two vehicles. [Mawazin]
An army helicopter destroyed a Daesh vehicle heading towards Makhoul Mountains, northeast of Baiji, a source in Salahuddin Operations Command said. [Ghad]
Daesh issues a video of battles in Makhoul Mountains. [JustPaste]
Tikrit
A source in Salahuddin Operations Command said that large military reinforcements arrived at Speicher base and the fertilizer factory compound east of Tikrit. The source described artillery pieces, tanks, and multiple rocket launchers, among other equipment, saying that they are intended for the liberation of Shirqat. [Ghad]
A security source says Daesh terrorists sneaked into and set on fire 4 non-producing oilfields in Allas. The source says more than 25 fields are still burning in the area, accusing the Ministry of Oil of not being serious about dealing with this problem. [BasNews]
Dijla Operation Command reports repelling a large Daesh attack on Allas oil fields killing a large number of the attackers. Two soldiers were killed. [AIN]
Daesh publishes photos of 2 of its terrorists near Tikrit. [JustPaste]
DaeshDaily comment. So, by having a couple of terrorists taking photos near a city you can make people think that city is part of your caliphate. Daesh does this all the time.
Samarra
Karim Al-Nouri, a member of the PMF Commission, said that the PMF is maneuvering and adapting movable operations tactics to distract Daesh so they won’t know where the next strike will be. He said, nevertheless, the operation to liberate the rest of the Samarra and Tikrit areas would take place very shortly. [Mawazin]
An Iraqi CH4 drone destroyed two vehicle bombs and killed 6 Daesh terrorists on al-Sharif Abbas road west of Jazeera Samarra. [AIN]
DIYALA
Baquba
Two men were arrested in northeast Baquba, one of them on terrorism charges, a Diyala Police source said. [Sumaria]
KIRKUK
Daesh shelled Taza subdistrict south of Kirkuk with 13 rockets, wounding three civilians and causing material damage, a security source in Kirkuk said. The shelling came from Al-Bashir village. The Turkmen Mobilization forces responded with counter artillery and mortar shelling. [Mada]
Anwar Al-Assi, the Sheikh of Ubaid tribes in Iraq, called on Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi to order the liberation of Hawija, before Mosul, due to its strategic importance. Daesh uses it to attack Allas, Ajeel, Himrin and even areas around Falluja, he said, not just southern and western Kirkuk. He said the Ubaid tribe has over 1,200 fighters in Fatha and 600 in Himrin, in addition to 1,000 policemen in Hawija ready to fight to recover their city. [Sumaria]
Daesh remotely destroyed 35 houses in Hawija with IEDs as a signal to those opposing it in the city, according to Sheikh Omar Sufian, leader of an anti-Daesh tribal council. [Maalomah]
Coalition warplanes killed two terrorists and destroyed a mortar gun near Kirkuk, JOC said. [AIN]
A large weapons cache was detected in Khalawiya, north of Himrin, by the Dijla Operations Command. IWMC says it contained 18 explosives belts, 20 mortar shells, and Afghan outfits. A complete IED workshop was also found with 50 IEDs inside, all were destroyed. [AIN]
NINEWA
Mosul
Daesh says 3 people were killed and 9 wounded, including civil defense members, in 2 consecutive airstrikes on the same area of Baghdad Street in Mosul city. [A3maq]
Daesh publishes photos of the Friday market in Mosul. [JustPaste]
Daesh publishes photos of fixing the windows of Qayara General Hospital that were damaged by airstrikes. [JustPaste]
Nineveh Plain
Daesh says its terrorists shot down a Peshmerga drone in Bashiqa (video). [A3maq]
Northwest Ninewa (Tal Afar, Sinjar)
Kurdish authorities are investigating, with US assistance, the possibility that Daesh made a chemical attack on their troops in Sinjar. The symptoms of nausea and vomiting have been noted on “tens” of its fighters after a Daesh attack with locally made rockets filled with chlorine, most likely on Feb. 25. If proven, it will be the 8th attack of the kind, according to KRG sources. [Mawazin]
Two Coalition airstrikes in Sinjar destroyed a Daesh mortar gun and rocket launching platform, the JOC said. [AIN]
Daesh says it shot down a second Peshmerga drone east of Tal Afar. [A3maq] (See Nineveh Plain subsection above.)
The Coalition bombed Daesh in Tal Afar, killing 4 terrorists and destroying a combat position, JOC said. [AIN]
Other Governorates
KURDISTAN
President Barzani will appoint a committee to follow up on the reforms in the KDP and the KRG. The committee will be chaired by Judge Raouf Rasheed, the judge who sentenced Saddam to death, and will have 4 other judges, including a foreigner. [BasNews]
DaeshDaily comment. We would have volunteered for this committee.
REPORTS FROM TURKEY
Four Saudi F-16 fighter jets and two Saudi cargo jets carrying soldiers and war materiel landed at Turkey’s Incirlik airbase on Friday, Anadolu’s correspondent reports. Saudi and Emirati war materiel and staff began arriving at Incirlik on Thursday, the Turkish Foreign Minister announced. [Anadolu] [Arabi21]
Photos of the four Saudi fighters arriving at Incirlik airbase. [Erem]
Turkish artillery “responded” to cross-border fire from Syrian Army artillery, a Turkish security source said, after five shells reportedly fired by Syrian units fell on an uninhabited area near Yayladağı in Turkey’s Hatay Province, on the Mediterranean east of Aleppo Governorate, without causing injuries. [Anadolu]
REPORTS FROM SYRIA
Ninety-seven opposition factions will honor the cease-fire brokered by America and Russia which is due to take effect Friday night in Syria, a joint statement said Friday. The factions committed to stop attacks on the Syrian Army throughout Syria. Syrian official media announced that Syrian troops would abide by the cease-fire but reserved the right to respond to attacks. Daesh and Al-Nusra Front and other allied extremist groups are not covered by the cease-fire agreement. Russia said it would abide by the agreement, apart from targeting Daesh, but reserved the right to respond to any attacks by opposition groups. [ARA]
Abu Muhammad Al-Julani the commander of the Nusra Front (which as Al-Qaeda’s franchise in Syria is not covered by the cease-fire agreement) has released an audio recording in which he lambastes the opposition factions for accepting the cease-fire agreement, which he describes as a deceptive Western plot, while the “real negotiations” are, in his words, “on the battlefield.” Al-Julani called on Syrians to reject the cease-fire, which he said would put an end the Syrian revolution (video). [ARA]
Northeast (Hasaka, Raqqa)
The Kurdish Asayesh intelligence agency of the “Self-Administration Government” in Hasaka safely detonated a vehicle bomb in a village near Al-Dabasiya, which Daesh is suspected to have planted. [ARA]
52 Arabs who joined the YPG to form the “Al-Shahid Baran Deir Ez-Zor” brigade have finished their training in Til Koçer/Al-Yaarubiyah, located in eastern Hasaka on the Iraqi border (photos). [Hawar]
Shaddadi
The Syria Democratic Forces released a statement announcing that 2400 square km (925 square miles) were captured in its recent “Ghadab Al-Khabour” campaign in Hasaka, which culminated in the capture of Shaddadi earlier this week. The SDF captured 315 villages and farms from Daesh, it said, and killed 275 Daesh fighters and captured nine. The SDF says it captured the bodies of 55 of the dead Daesh fighters, as well as capturing weapons from Daesh and destroying 33 Daesh vehicle bombs. However, 20 SDF fighters were killed in the campaign, the statement said (photos). [Welati] [Hawar] [ARA]
The health and education sectors in Shaddadi deteriorated sharply during Daesh’s control of the area, residents said. Residents complained of lack of vaccines for children, spreading disease, and lack of medical expertise and treatments for ailments. Schools stopped teaching for two years, and children were only given education in mosques while schools were turned into explosives-making factories, other residents said. [ARA]
Photos of the PYD “Self-Administration Government” distributing flour, sugar, and drinking water to residents of the Shaddadi countryside [ARA] [Hawar]
Two Coalition airstrikes in Sinjar destroyed a Daesh mortar gun and rocket launching platform, the JOC said. [AIN]
Raqqa
The SDF is expected to begin besieging Raqqa “very soon,” the Pentagon’s spokesman said without specifying further. [Welati]
French warplanes struck a Daesh ammunition storehouse in Raqqa, according to a Coalition statement. [ARA]
Northwest (Aleppo, Idlib)
Daesh says its terrorists captured Al-Hammam Mountain and Al-Hammam village, south of Khanasir, again cutting off the Syrian Army’s road to Khanasir from the south. [A3maq]
Daesh says its terrorists captured two areas between Al-Hammam village and Khanasir. [JA3maq] [JustPaste]
Daesh says by capturing these areas it is still cutting Syrian troops off from the road between Hama and Aleppo for the fifth day in a row. Daesh says 38 Syrian soldiers and supporting militiamen were killed in the battles, while its terrorists captured a T72 tank, 2 vehicles, a Katyusha rocket launcher, and other weapons. [A3maq] [JustPaste]
Daesh publishes photos of battles near Shalala Al-Kabira village north of Khanasir. [JustPaste]
Daesh publishes photos of shelling and rocketing Syrian troops in Rasm Al-Nafal village. [JustPaste]
Daesh publishes a video of its terrorists in Al-Hammam Mountain area. [A3maq]
Aleppo East/South
Daesh resumed shelling and rocketing of villages south of Kobane and east of the Euphrates River from its positions west of the river, Hawar reports. Five shells and locally made rockets fell Friday in the Arab village of Tal Abr, launched from the Jabal Al-Shamiya area of Jarabulus. The shelling is ongoing and there is no information with respect to casualties. [Hawar]
In what appears to be a sign of tension between certain Syrian factions, media officials in the PYD-dominated sector of Kobane blocked the broadcast of the independent Orient channel and the pro-KDP Rudaw channel, accusing them of giving a “tarnished picture of life in Rojava,” (the Syrian Kurdish controlled areas. [Welati]
New information appears to contradict yesterday’s reports of the Syrian Army having broken the Daesh siege south of Aleppo along the road that connects Aleppo to Hama and passes through Khanasir. An activist in Al-Bab reports that Daesh reestablished its control over the strategic road after fierce attacks on Syrian troops and allied militias Friday and despite heavy Russian airstrikes and Syrian artillery fire. Daesh is in control of the Jabal Hammam Mountain south of Aleppo, giving it control over the road, Qasioun reports. [ARA] [Qasioun]
A Lebanese Hezbollah commander, Ali Fayyad, was killed in combat with Daesh at Khanasir on Thursday, according to a pro-Hezbollah social media site. [Tunisien]
Central and West (Homs, Hama, etc.)
Syrian artillery units shelled Daesh positions in Qaryatayn and Jabal Al-Hiyal east of Homs, amid reports of deaths and injuries among the Daesh fighters. Daesh and Syrian troops fought renewed battles along multiple fronts east of Homs, in Qaryatayn, and Al-Dowa, amid Daesh mortar fire on Syrian troops in Al-Dowa. [Qasioun]
Daesh publishes photos of shelling Syrian troops with artillery in Mahin. [AKI]
Daesh publishes photos of distributing sheep in Qaryatayn. [JustPaste]
DaeshDaily comment. Daesh bought the loyalty of many tribes in Iraq and Syria by giving them land, houses and livestock of people it killed or displaced. With the decrease in its resources, Daesh is doing the same thing in the name of “zakat”. It takes tax money from some people and gives it to others. (All right, we know what some of you conservatives are thinking.)
East (Deir Ez-Zor)
Daesh stoned a Belgian national Daesh member to death in Deir Ez-Zor on Friday after sentencing him to death for adultery. [ARA]
South (Damascus, Rif Dimashq, etc.)
Bouthaina Shaaban, a political advisor to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, alleged that Saudi Arabia and Turkey were supporting Daesh and said that defeating Daesh would be easier if the two states stopped their supposed support. [ARA]
OTHER MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORTS
Neighboring countries
Saudi Arabia/United Arab Emirates
Saudi warplanes, troops, and war materiel, as well as UAE supplies and staff, began arriving at Turkey’s Incirlik airbase. (See report above under Turkey).
Saudi Arabia
Daesh publishes a video of executing a Saudi emergency forces soldier in Saudi Arabia. [Isdarat]
DaeshDaily comment. Several online sources said the soldier was killed by his own cousins and friends who pledged allegiance to Daesh.
North Africa
Egypt
Giza
According to breaking reports, a policeman has been killed at a checkpoint in the Al-Maraziq area of Al-Badrashin in Giza governorate on Friday, the same area where an attack attributed to pro-Daesh militants killed another policeman earlier in the month. [ElWatan]
North Sinai
Egyptian F-16 fighters and Apache helicopters conducted raids on sites southwest of Rafah and south of Arish and Sheikh Zuweid on Thursday night, lasting several hours into early Friday morning, according to local sources. Security sources said 15 Ansar Bayt Al-Maqdis leaders were killed and 22 wounded. Among those killed was an Ansar leader identified as “Sami S.A.” assassinated by an Apache copter airstrike while riding a motorcycle, the sources said. [ElWatan]
Two policemen were injured in an IED explosion that struck an armored police vehicle south of Rafah on Friday. [ElWatan]
An IED exploded in the path of military vehicles on the Jisr Al-Wadi road in Arish on Friday, without causing any casualties. [ElWatan]
Security troops launched sound-and-light bombs in east and central Arish city before dawn on Friday, as an alert signal, according to official statements and residents who heard the blasts. [ElWatan]
Libya
Northwest
Renewed fighting broke out Friday between Daesh and Libyan troops and local militias in Sabratha, local sources said. Residents reported that local militias had seized control of the Al-Alaqa market where Daesh members had barricaded themselves. At least seven Daesh members were killed Friday including three women, according to an AfriGate correspondent, who also said two Tunisian Daesh members had been captured. Two Daesh commanders were reported killed: Abdullah Al-Dabashi, also known as Abdullah Haftar, and Hamouda Aziz Ahmad Sasi. In addition, two other Daesh leaders, Abu Al-Qasim Al-Afghani, and Ahmad Al-Sharif, were reported captured in Sabratha. Since Tuesday, 39 Libyans have been killed fighting Daesh in Sabratha, and 101 wounded, a health official said Friday. [AfriGate] [AfriGate] [AfriGate] [Wasat]
Libyan sources said that a Tunisian Daesh member, “Nour Al-Din Shoushan” was killed Friday in fighting in Libya, according to reports on social media, contradicting a reported earlier claim that the militant was killed in a US drone strike the previous week (photo). [Tunisien]
Central
Residents of Sirte reported unidentified planes circling the skies over the city since early morning on Friday. [Wasat]
Northeast
Daesh says one of its suicide terrorists attacked Libyan troops in the Hawari area on the outskirts of Benghazi with a vehicle bomb, killing 25 soldiers and militiamen, including a local leader. [JustPaste]
Here Daesh says at least 26 soldiers were killed. [A3maq]
Daesh publishes photos of the vehicle bomb and the explosion. [AKI]
Daesh issues a video allegedly of an American warplane flying alongside Libyan helicopters over Benghazi during the battles. [A3maq]
Morocco
Rabat rejects any possible intervention in Libya, the Moroccan Foreign Minister Salaheddine Mezouar announced Friday in a joint press conference with his Tunisian counterpart in the Moroccan capital. [Anadolu]
Other countries
Yemen
Daesh issues a video exposing Al-Qaeda lies in one of Al-Qaeda’s videos about an attack in Yemen. Al-Qaeda issued a video some days ago exposing Daesh lies. [Isdarat]
DaeshDaily comment. Between the two esteemed opponents, we don’t know who lies more.
Afghanistan
Daesh says it stopped a Taliban attack in Nangarhar, killing 18 Taliban fighters and wounding others and capturing weapons and ammunitions. [JustPaste]
SOCIAL MEDIA SOURCES
Facebook Page of the Day
An anti-Daesh page from Ramadi
Daesh Twitter Accounts of the Day
https://twitter.com/alkhinjar119
https://twitter.com/b8bfdb952b0842a
Other Daesh media
Daesh issues a video threatening the founders of Facebook and Twitter to “wipe out their names from existence” because of their recent campaigns against Daesh accounts. [YouTube]
Daesh audio newsletter for today in Arabic [JustPaste]
