January 12, 2016
Today’s Major Developments:
Deadly attack on Istanbul tourist area kills many German and other tourists. (See Reports from Turkey, below)
IED explosions increase in Baghdad.
Army continues clearing Ramadi and nearby cities to the east.
Two Al-Sharqiya TV journalists shot dead near Muqdadiya, Diyala.
Lawlessness brings security crisis, Al-Abadi action in Basra.
Report details Daesh organization in Libya.
REPORTS FROM IRAQ
BAGHDAD
Political developments
Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi visited the Baghdad Jadida District today to assess the results of yesterday’s terror attack. He inspected attack locations and talked to the people. [Maalomah]
Ali Al-Tamimi, Baghdad’s Governor, demanded that the people responsible for Baghdad Jadida security be put on trial, given the recent security violations. [Maalomah]
France, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia condemned terror attacks in Baghdad against civilians, stating their support to Iraq for its war on terror. [AIN] [AIN]
DaeshDaily comment. More vocal condemnation against any kind of violence in Iraq is more than needed, especially by Arab and Muslim countries.
John Kirby, spokesman of the US Department of State, issued a statement today condemning the terror attacks in Baghdad and Diyala yesterday and expressing continued US support for Iraq. [Ghad]
The IWMC, in coordination with the PM office and the Coalition, started training sessions for its media people. [MoD Website]
DaeshDaily comment. The IWMC needs a lot of help because of its poor reporting. This is a good step from the Coalition.
The CoR might submit a compulsory military service law instead of the National Guard Law that’s been stalled for more than a year now. [Mada]
A Shia MP questions former vice-president Osama Nujaifi about the fall of Mosul. She says he is trying to cover for his brother, who faces 12 accusations by Ninewa GC for his role in letting Daesh capture Mosul. She also says Nujaifi should have mentioned the name of the Iranian general who warned him in advance about Mosul. [Sumaria]
Osama Nujaifi had told Sky News that a high ranking Iranian general approached him, four months before Mosul’s fall, and told him the city would fall to Daesh if Nujaifi didn’t cooperate with Maliki. He said he considered that a direct threat. He says Iraqi elite forces withdrew from Mosul and didn’t fight, while the rest were infected by corruption. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. A lot of books could be written about Mosul fall. All of them would be conspiracy theories supported by some evidence (unlike the usual rumor-based conspiracy theories). For example, many people in Mosul believe that Maliki let Mosul fall to punish them for not supporting him. Others have focused on former Governor Nujaifi, who continues to provide ammunition for his opponents.
Security developments
The G4S security company, responsible for Baghdad International Airport security, announced a 100% security alert for the airport following yesterday’s attacks in Baghdad Jadida. [Sumaria]
Saad Al-Mutalibi, member of the security committee in the Baghdad Provincial Council said the car that exploded in Baghdad Jadida came from the Arab Jabour area in south Baghdad. He wondered how a bomb-rigged car could travel all that distance and cross that many checkpoints without being detected. [Maalomah]
DaeshDaily comment. Good question. There have been persistent statements that Daesh’s attacks in Baghdad are often facilitated through government security personnel, that in effect they are an inside job. This seems like a good test case for that theory. How did that car get to the explosion point despite all those checkpoints?
Denmark will send 120 more soldiers to Anbar to provide training and advice to Iraqi forces, without participating in combat. Denmark has had 250 soldiers in a training mission in Iraq since 2014, media sources said. [AIN]
Acting Commander in Chief of the armed forces, General Othman Al-Ghanimi, met today with the MENA advisor of the British Defence Ministry, Thomas Becket, and discussed continued training and air support by the UK forces to Iraq. [Maalomah]
A “significant” group of 10 terrorists was arrested in Baghdad today. The IWMC said that the group is affiliated with the Wilayat Al-Janoub (southern command) of Daesh, and is charged with attacks on security personnel and civilians as well as transfer and storage of weapons. [Sumaria]
Mo’een Al-Kadhimi, a leader of the PMFs, says he does not understand why there are 50,000 MoD soldiers in Baghdad while the fighting fronts are in real need of more men. He says PMFs are holding a vast area behind a line extending for over 1500 km (about 1,000 miles), from the outskirts of Baghdad to the Makhoul Mountains and Himrin Hills, despite shortages in men, money, and supplies. This area, he argues, is much larger than areas controlled by the regular army. [Etejah]
However, the Al-Abbas combat division of the PMFs today authorized one of its divisions to call its 15,000 reservists to service if needed and requested by the Baghdad Operations Command (BOC), following yesterday’s attacks in Baghdad. The fighters would be placed under the command of the BOC. [Buratha]
The Ministry of Defense said plans to liberate Hit and Falluja are ready to implement, pending the decision of Anbar Operations Command. [Maalomah]
Daesh says its terrorists detonated an IED on a PMF gathering in Mahmudiya in south Baghdad, killing three PMFs and wounding seven. Daesh also says it detonated an IED on a PMF patrol in Yusufiyah in south Baghdad, killing or wounding many PMFs. Daesh also targeted an Iraqi Army personnel carrier in Yusufiyah, about which it mentioned no casualties. [ADI]
According to security sources:
- A sticky bomb attached to the car of a Ministry of Education employee went off today and killed him as he passed through the Shula area in northwest Baghdad. [Maalomah]
- As soldier was killed and 4 others wounded when a roadside IED exploded near a passing Army patrol in Al-Falahat village in Tarmiya in northern Baghdad Governorate. [AIN]
- Daesh says one of its snipers killed an Iraqi soldier in Tarmiya. [JustPaste]
- A terror suspect was arrested at the Taji checkpoint in northern Baghdad Governorate. [Sumaria]
- A roadside IED in Taji District exploded while a police patrol was passing by, wounding two policemen, according to a security source. [Sumaria]
- A bomb-rigged motorcycle was found by security near Ishtar Hotel in downtown Baghdad. The bomb was defused without casualties. [AIN]
- An IED placed in a popular market in Dora in south Baghdad killed 2 civilians and wounded 6. [Mada]
- Three men were arrested following a search campaign in Arab Jabour village near Dora on terror charges. [Mada]
- A body of a man was found near the former Al-Rasheed military camp in south Baghdad. The man was handcuffed. [Ghad]
- Two civilians were killed and nine wounded in an IED explosion in Mada’in in southeast Baghdad Governorate today. [Baghdadia]
- An IED went off today on Al-Dhagt road in Ghazaliya west Baghdad. One person was killed and six wounded. [Mada]
- An IED placed in a popular market in Abu Ghraib in western Baghdad Governorate went off today, killing two and wounding 5 civilians, a security source said. [Maalomah]
ANBAR
Ramadi
Daesh tried to attack the 76th Army Brigade in Ramadi with 4 bomb-rigged cars and 20 attackers armed with machine guns and RPG 7 rocket launchers. The brigade repelled the attack with the support of the 16th Division artillery, which destroyed the vehicles and killed 14 terrorists according to security sources. [Rudaw]
A commander of Anbar tribal forces said the IEDs and explosives set by Daesh in Ramadi are in the “thousands” and are of many customary and non-customary types. He added that detecting and removing these bombs is causing some delay in the Army’s work to liberate the remaining few areas of Ramadi. [Mada]
Minister of Interior Mohammed Al-Ghabban and Prime Minister Al-Abadi approved the rehiring of policemen who were previously expelled from active service but fought alongside the Army and tribal units in the successful Ramadi battle. [Sumaria]
A floating bridge is being built by military engineers to connect western areas of Ramadi to the center of the city. The original bridge was destroyed by Daesh earlier. [Sumaria]
A video of several Daesh terrorists, including a Saudi, caught by Iraqi Counter-Terrorism troops. [YouTube]
The MoD publishes a video of Coalition airstrikes near Ramadi. [MoD Website]
Iraqi forces found 9 IEDs while clearing the security service building in Ramadi. [IWMC Report]
A video of a Daesh rocket factory found by Iraqi forces in Ramadi. [Hurra]
Army and security troops fully secured Ramadi-Sufiya road which would allow hundreds of families to evacuate the area within the 48 hour time limit set by the Army, Anbar Operations Command (AOC) said today. [Maalomah]
Army and security forces’ advance east of Ramadi was halted to allow civilians to evacuate their areas within the time frame given to them, said the Khaldiya subdistrict council. [Maalomah]
Iraqi forces supported by the IAA and Coalition warplanes killed several Daesh terrorists while clearing Sufiya. Two Iraqi soldiers were killed in the operations. [IWMC Report]
Two children were killed when a Daesh IED exploded on them near a house in Sufiya. [IWMC Report]
A video of Iraqi soldiers securing families who escaped from Sufiya. By the end of the video we see a woman whose face was burned by Daesh because she didn’t wear a niqab (face covering). [YouTube]
A video of Iraqi Golden Division soldiers evacuating civilians from Ramadi. [YouTube]
250 persons, many of them women and children, were rescued by the Army from Sajariya and Sufiya east of Ramadi and transferred to Habbaniya camp. Seven of these persons were wounded, according to the Commander of the 3rd Counter-Terror Division. [Sumaria]
Anbar GC sources say that only 30% of the liberated areas of Anbar are destroyed. [Mawazin]
DaeshDaily comment. So it’s not as bad as Baiji but 30% is a lot. Daesh was proud of the amount of damage it caused in Ramadi. Its supporters think the damage is a sign of Daesh terrorists’ tenacity and resistance. The real message is “we won’t leave you easily. We will destroy anything we can”. This message is in the tradition of Saddam, who said “I won’t give up Iraq before the last palm tree is burned.”
AOC Commander announced today that an operation by his troops killed 5 Daesh terrorists including a sniper in Albu Farraj north of Ramadi. [Mada]
AOC operations in Albu Dhiab northeast of Ramadi by the 38th Infantry Brigade resulted in the deaths of 6 Daesh terrorists and defusing of 40 IEDs, AOC sources said today. [Maalomah]
The Anbar Operations Commander says his troops killed 7 Daesh terrorists and destroyed 3 vehicle bombs while clearing Albu Farraj and Albu Dhiab north of Ramadi. [BasNews]
Iraqi forces found 1,000 “empty” Iraqi passports and 2 locally made drones in Albu Dhiab. [IWMC Report]
Daesh publishes an infographic about the Iraqi Army losses in Ramadi during the last 30 days. [ADI]
DaeshDaily comment. Here Daesh calculates the cost (in USD) of the losses and assumes that the Iraqi government won’t be able to pay salaries in the coming months.
Falluja
Baghdad Operations Command (BOC) troops killed 11 terrorists and defused 30 IEDs, 2 combat locations and a hideout south of Falluja. [IWMC Report]
Army helicopters tracked and destroyed a Daesh convoy of machine gun-mounted vehicles heading from Falluja south to Albu Hawa in Ameriyat Al-Falluja subdistrict, killing “tens” of Daesh fighters including leaders, an Ameriyat District Council source said. [Maalomah]
Daesh says its men killed three Iraqi soldiers south of Falluja. [ADI]
Here Daesh says its terrorists actually killed five Iraqi soldiers south of Falluja. [JustPaste]
Iraqi forces stopped a Daesh attack near Albu Daaij north of Ameriyat Al-Falluja, killing 3 terrorists and wounding 6. [IWMC Report]
BOC troops killed 7 Daesh terrorists and wounded 2 and destroyed a vehicle carrying a machine gun in Qarma. [IWMC Report]
The IAF destroyed a vehicle and killed 9 terrorists while the IAA destroyed another vehicle and killed 7 terrorists in the Thirthar area. [BOC Facebook Page]
BOC troops defused 4 IEDs and cleared 14 km (9 miles) of a main road in the Thirthar area. [IWMC Report]
AOC said that 4 Daesh terrorists were killed while attacking Army lines in Saqlawiya, northwest of Falluja [Maalomah]
Hit/Haditha
The IAF bombed a Daesh convoy heading from Hit to Barwana, destroying 6 vehicles and killing more than 35 terrorists. [IWMC Report]
Daesh lost 33 out of its 43 highest ranking leaders in the fierce but failed Haditha and Barwana battles it initiated, tribal sources in Haditha said. [Mada]
SALAHUDDIN
Peshmerga 9th Brigade commander said that his forces facilitated transfer of over 600 persons who escaped Daesh areas to the Iraqi Army controlled areas in Salahuddin. [Sumaria]
Several PMF commanders issue a statement asking PM Abadi to investigate the drone bombing on a PMF unit near Al-Salam village in Salahuddin within 48 hours and asked the Iraqi MOD and JOC to issue an official apology. The statement says Daesh used its “American allies” and “their supporters” to bomb Iraqi forces more than once. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Let’s separate the issues. The alleged rogue drone should be investigated through official military channels, as should all possible “friendly fire” incidents. Let the investigation determine whether and by whom an apology is owed.
The snide reference to Americans as Daesh allies is just more anti-US and (one always suspects) pro-Iran propaganda, and is another political shot at Abadi’s leadership, using his cooperative relationship with the US against him. It is increasingly obvious that certain Shia PMF leaders intend to use their self-defined anti-Daesh accomplishments as a route to political power. This would of course reopen the same Sunni hostility that largely caused the Daesh crisis in the first place.
In Iraq, the subplots behind the story are often the larger story. Al-Abadi has mostly succeeded in keeping the Shia militia leaders at bay. The unified command structure has limited their room to freelance militarily. The coordinated media policy limits their air time, conceding that the few who mouth off on their own show the limitations of the policy. Recapturing Ramadi without them was a huge boost to the Army and to tribal PMFs in Anbar, but also undermined the anti-Abadi militia leaders by showing that Iraq is not entirely dependent on them. Their share of responsibility for Falluja has yet to be announced, assuming it’s even settled, but there will now be pressure on the Shia PMFs to show they can perform at the Army’s level, and their leaders have already made a big point of saying they don’t want Coalition air support. (In Falluja? Good luck with that!) Likewise, who has what role in the upcoming Ninewa campaign will be as important for the subplots as it is for the larger story.
Baiji
The Iraq Federal Police (IFP) commander said IFP artillery shelled and killed several Daesh terrorists in the Makhoul Mountains, in addition to killing a Daesh sniper in Hsaiba, east of Ramadi. [Qurtas]
Daesh says it rocketed and burned an Iraqi Army barracks in the Makhoul Mountains. [JustPaste]
Tikrit
Daesh shelled the city of Tikrit with several locally made rockets without causing any casualties. The shelling accompanied a failed attack by Daesh on the western side of the city, according to security sources. [Mada]
Army and security forces repelled today a major attack by Daesh in the Al-Jazeera area west of Tikrit with 8 bomb-rigged cars and a large number of men. 25 terrorists were killed and vehicles destroyed, according to a security source [Buratha]
Samarra
A strike by Army helicopters on a Daesh gathering in Mkaishifa, west of Samarra, killed “tens” of terrorists and destroyed three military positions and three vehicles, said the IWMC today. [Ghad]
8th Army Division interceded today against a Daesh attack in Mkaishifa, killing 8 terrorists and destroying 3 vehicles, the IWMC said. [Ghad]
Daesh says one of its Russian terrorists destroyed an Iraqi Army barracks with a vehicle bomb in Mkaishifa, killing or wounding many soldiers. [JustPaste]
PMF spokesman Karim Al-Nouri said that the PMFs blocked some roads including the Strategic Line to prevent Daesh from sending bomb-rigged vehicles into Salahuddin. [Mawazin]
Daesh says it destroyed 3 Iraqi Humvees and an SUV near Samarra Dam and killed or wounded many soldiers (photos). [GulfUp] [ADI]
Southern Salahuddin
Armed men belonging to some PMF factions are said to have destroyed houses in Yathrib and Aziz Balad, east of Balad. [Ghad]
Tooz
Armed men kidnapped today the Iraq elections commission officer in Tooz, a security source said. [Baghdadia]
DIYALA
Baquba
A bomb-rigged car intercepted a car transporting the Diyala intelligence director in Jidaidat Al-Shatt east of Baquba, wounding him and killing a first lieutenant riding in his car and two others, while wounding 4 persons at the scene. [Sumaria]
The Badr commander, Hadi Al-Ameri, held a large conference attended by the Diyala provincial government, military commanders and tribal leaders to discuss the return of the displaced families to Diyala. [Rudaw]
DaeshDaily comment. The issue of displaced families is one of the most difficult facing the Iraqi government. Between their fear of retaliation, the fear of Daesh sleeper cells, the infrastructure damage, and lack of services, citizens are anxious about their return and the governorate and national government are anxious about it too, for all the same reasons. It’s a dilemma that does not have an easy solution.
A roadside IED exploded in Balad Ruz, east of Baquba, wounding three civilians, a security source said. [Baghdadia]
Muqdadiya/Abu Saida
Two journalists, a correspondent and cameraman, working for Al Sharqiya TV, were shot dead by unidentified armed men after their car was intercepted and stopped near Muqdadiya, a security source said. [Baghdadia]
A security source says the two journalists accompanied the Diyala Operations Commander to cover the events in Muqdadiya yesterday, They were targeted as they were returning alone by armed men who were following them. The Iraqi Journalistic Freedoms Observatory says 293 journalists have been killed in Iraq since 2003. Journalists and MPs from Diyala say the government should not let this crime go unsolved and should activate the journalist protection law. The Diyala Police command formed a task force to investigate the murders of the two journalists. [Ghad] [JFO Website] [Mada]
The stories of attacks on 6 mosques in Diyala yesterday are not true, according to the security director of the province, saying that all worship houses are well protected. There was an attempt yesterday to attack two of them but it resulted in minor material damages. He promised more details very shortly. Media sources reported attacks on 3-5 mosques in Muqdadiya yesterday. [Sumaria]
Diyala security director, Brigadier General Jassim Al-Saadi, said that security Diyala is under control, following the series of terror attacks, adding that army and police are now deployed all over the province. [Sumaria] Notwithstanding his confidence, incidents continued.
Diyala Police found bodies of two men from Kanaan subdistrict shot to death near the road connecting Muqdadiya to Baquba. The two were kidnapped three days ago. [Sumaria]
Daesh says its terrorists stopped an Iraqi Army attack in rural Shirween village northeast of Muqdadiya, killing two soldiers and forcing the rest to flee. [JustPaste]
A local source says unknown armed men destroyed a commercial building in Muqdadiya; there were no human casualties. [Sumaria]
Northern Diyala
Daesh says it detonated an IED on a PMF vehicle near Khanaqin, destroying it and killing or wounding the fighters inside. [JustPaste]
Daesh says its terrorists rigged an Iraqi officer’s house with explosives and blew it up in Khanaqin. [JustPaste]
Daesh says it detonated 2 IEDs on 2 Peshmerga vehicles in Khanaqin, damaging them and killing one fighter and wounding others. [JustPaste]
KIRKUK
Daesh executed four persons, all from one family, in Hawija today on charges of attempting to escape. Families are not allowed to leave Daesh controlled areas. [Maalomah]
3 Daesh terrorists were arrested while trying to plant an IED east of Kirkuk, a security source said. [Maalomah]
NINEWA
Mosul
Daesh whiplashed 90 shop owners in Bab Al-Tob in Mosul for refusing to accept small and damaged banknotes, mainly the IQD 250 banknote, which lost its value in Mosul due to high prices. The penalty is 50 whips for each trader, local sources in Mosul said. [BasNews]
The US DOS spokesman John Kirby says the US sent experts and equipment to check the situation of the Mosul Dam and will help Iraq maintain it in order to prevent a human catastrophe. [Mada]
A Ninewa police source says Daesh issued a new tax on every house in Mosul (who used to own phone landlines) to pay 150,000 ID (125 USD) to return the service to their houses even if they don’t want the service. [BasNews]
DaeshDaily comment. With the heavy airstrikes on Daesh money resources, and the airstrike on its bank yesterday, Daesh will keep issuing more taxes.
Northwest Ninewa
Daesh says it shelled and rocketed Peshmerga locations in several areas in northwest Ninewa. [ADI]
Makhmur
Daesh publishes photos of shelling the Peshmerga in Tal Al-Reem. [MRKZGulf] [MRKZGulf] [MRKZGulf]
Daesh publishes photos of rocketing the Peshmerga in Makhmur. [ADI]
Other Governorates
KURDISTAN
Italy’s Ambassador to Iraq said that Italy is sending more military trainers to the Kurdistan region to support and train Peshmerga forces, said a security source. [BasNews]
SOUTHERN IRAQ
Basra. Prime Minister Al-Abadi orders withdrawal of heavy arms from Basra and orders that security be imposed in the province by all means possible. He said organized crime groups are at the same level as terrorist groups and should be treated as such. [AIN]
PM Abadi gives orders to send a task force to secure Basra. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Heavy clashes erupted between tribes in Basra recently. All kinds of weapons were used and many people were killed. This is yet another example of the fact that, Daesh aside, the most important problem in Iraq is the absence of the rule of law.
Qadessiya. Security personnel today arrested a terror suspect in Dagarra, north of Diwaniya, according to a security source. [Diwaniya]
REPORTS FROM TURKEY
Deadly attack in Istanbul tourist area
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has claimed that the suicide bomber who detonated himself in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square on Tuesday, killing ten people, was a member of Daesh born in 1988, not revealing his name or how he was identified. [Later media reports indicated that he was identified from fingerprints.] The PM’s announcement seemed to contradict an earlier Cumhuriyet report which says the bomber was a man named Nabil Fadli, born in Saudi Arabia.
All those killed in the attack were foreigners, the PM said. Most were German tourists, prompting the PM to place a call to German Chancellor Angela Merkel to break the news. At least 15 people were wounded in the attack and the death toll is expected to rise. The PM also said in remarks to the press that the Syrian people are not responsible for the existence of terrorist groups, blaming what he called the “security void” in the region.
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the bomber was a Syrian national, and asked “Is there another state in the world confronting the terrorist Daesh organization more firmly than Turkey, and which pays the price as we do?” The attacker entered Turkey recently, Turkey announced, and as such was not on any list of wanted persons in Turkey.
The blast was so violent it left a trench one meter deep in places. Further details may be difficult to gather as, according to the Cumhuriyet newspaper, the Turkish government has invoked legislation allowing temporary restrictions on news reporting for reasons of national security or threats to public order.
[Erem] [IslamMemo] [Arabi21] [Cihan] [Anadolu] [Cumhuriyet] [Cumhuriyet] [Cumhuriyet]
Turkish news video of emergency response to the attack. [Cihan]
DaeshDaily comment: Thank you to one of our readers for some important tips from the Turkish press about this horrible attack.
We are personally familiar with Sultanahmet, which is a popular tourist location in Istanbul. It is within walking distance of several major attractions and has many popular restaurants and shops. Terrorists planning this attack had to have known that this was a location where most of their victims would likely be Europeans. Killing foreign tourists was therefore a deliberate choice.
Arrests
Turkish police arrested 21 suspects in the southeastern Urfa governorate on suspicions of belonging to Daesh, security sources said, while anti-terrorism police arrested 16 suspects in Ankara–15 Syrians and one Turk–on similar suspicions, according to information shown to Anadolu. In the Ankara arrests police also seized “a large quantity” of documents related to Daesh. [Anadolu] [Anadolu]
Turkish public views on Daesh
In a survey conducted in Turkey by an Ankara-based polling organization, the overwhelming majority of respondents reported negative views of Daesh. Among the minority, 10 percent of respondents said Daesh was not a terrorist organization in their view; 21 percent of respondents said that Daesh represented Islam; 8.9 percent said Daesh represented a “state or governorate.” [Erem]
REPORTS FROM SYRIA
Northeast
DaeshDaily update. We published last week a story by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights about a Daesh member who executed his mother publicly because she urged him to leave Daesh. A Facebook page appeared of someone who claimed he was the Daesh member mentioned in the story. He denied killing his mother and said he was sleeping “when that happened”. Later on he said the woman who got killed was not his mother at all, and his mother was “repenting” in Daesh custody because she is Alawite. He said he was not afraid of anyone and if he had killed his mother he would say it.
Well, we thank the nice gentleman for telling us he was sleeping while his colleagues were killing (or educating) his own mother.
Regardless of this denial, within the Salafi Takfiri line, your first enemies, who try to sway you from the “real Islam”, are your parents and your immediate family. Abu Qatada, one of Al-Qaeda’s clerics, praised an Algerian terrorist who killed his parents because they let his sister marry a soldier. In this video we see a Saudi Daesh terrorists saying “You should start by disowning then killing your family members, your father, your brother, your uncle, especially if they were working for Saudi army or security”.
Daesh publishes 2 photos of targeting the YPG near Al-Hawl with locally made rockets. [MRKZGulf] [MRKZGulf]
Northwest
Syrian Air Force bombing attacks in the countryside north of Aleppo stopped the progress of an opposition militia advance on Daesh positions, a Jabha Shamiya (Syrian Front) commander said. Allied opposition militias associated with the Fath Halab Operations Command attacked Daesh positions in the areas around Al-Taqali and Ghazl with heavy guns and artillery, he said, explaining that the joint attack by his militia group along with the Sultan Murad Brigades, Kata’eb Islamiya, and other allied groups had made “great advances” before their forward progress was stopped by Syrian Air Force bombing in Ghazl, which prevented them from reaching Daesh’s positions. [ARA]
Coalition planes attacked Daesh positions in the Manbij countryside and in sites east and west of the Tishrin Dam, killing 34 Daesh militants, the Syria Democratic Forces General Command announced. [ARA]
Russian planes conducted more than 14 airstrikes on the Daesh-held city of Manbij, killing at least 25 civilians and injuring 40 others, all civilians, a resident said. Medical and emergency personnel are in short supply, he said, describing a scene of fires burning and overwhelmed emergency response amid fears of renewed Russian strikes. [ARA]
Daesh says 25 people were killed and 44 wounded in 14 Russian airstrikes on Manbij in Aleppo’s eastern countryside. [A3maq]
Daesh says 9 people were killed and 15 wounded, mostly women and children, in an airstrike on Al-Bab. [A3maq]
Daesh says one of its suicide terrorists stopped a Syrian Army attempt to advance near Aisha village northeast of Kowaires airbase by attacking with a vehicle bomb, killing 12 soldiers and wounding “tens.” [ADI]
Central and West
Renewed fighting has erupted in the eastern Homs countryside between Syrian Army troops and Daesh fighters in the Qaryatayn area. [Qasioun]
Daesh says its terrorists destroyed a Syrian T72 tank in Dowa west of Tadmur. [A3maq]
Daesh says it killed four Syrian soldiers and captured 3 tanks and 3 cannons in addition to a rocket launcher and several rockets in Dowa. [A3maq]
Daesh says one of its Syrian suicide terrorists attacked Syrian troops with a vehicle bomb in Dowa, killing or wounding large numbers. Daesh also says it destroyed a Syrian Army armored vehicle in the same area. [ADI] Daesh says it captured 4 military positions in Dowa area in addition to the farms around them after a surprise attack. [ADI]
Daesh publishes photos of the military spoils its terrorists got in Dowa. [ADI]
East
In the last two days Daesh has conducted an arrest campaign in areas of Deir Ez-Zor that it controls, targeting “dissidents” from the Syrian Army, after posting a list of wanted names publicly, an activist said, adding that the detainees are required to take a 40-day “course.” Those who do not disclose their previous relationship with the Army are considered “collaborators” and could face harsher punishment, including execution, the resident said. [ARA]
Residents of villages around Shaitat in the eastern countryside of Deir Ez-Zor were allowed to return home on Monday, a year after Daesh displaced them from their homes and following multiple massacres and abuses committed by Daesh members against the residents of the area. According to photos obtained by Qasioun, the devastation in the area is extensive. Fighting between Daesh and Syrian Army with Syrian Air Force support has continued in other areas around Deir Ez-Zor. [Qasioun]
REPORTS FROM OTHER MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICAN COUNTRIES
Daesh audio newsletter for today in English. [Archive]
Daesh weekly magazine [ADI]
Lebanon. Iranian state-run media reported that Daesh has established a training camp in Lebanon. The Lebanese government denies any Daesh presence on its territory (photos). [Erem]
Egypt. Egypt’s Dar Al-Ifta, which issues religious fatwas and monitors fatwas issued elsewhere, said today that the instructions issued by Daesh to children to execute their parents are forbidden in Islam. It added that the recent incident in Raqqa in which a 20-year-old Syrian executed his own mother in public was not the first of its kind. [Aawsat]
DaeshDaily comment. Dar Al-Ifta is responding to the same story we covered above under Reports from Syria, in which the apparent perpetrator tries to retract his story. We covered the original Syria story when it happened. Since then, the incident has generated a lot of hostility around the Middle East toward Daesh, reflected in mass media and social media.
Libya. A report from Libya24 adds more detail to recently released information on the organizational structure of Daesh in Libya. A Daesh militant known as Abu Obeid Al-Masri has released information from Libya, which shows that the organization in Libya takes the form of a pyramidal hierarchy with a wali at the top, while the areas where Daesh operates in Libya are subdivided into directorates and administrative areas, along with institutions and councils such as a military council and a legislative council.
The names of the top Daesh officials are identified in the report, with some information provided differing with what was released in a report last week. The Libya24 report adds some details: The Daesh wali in Libya, based in Sirte, is known as Abu Amer Al-Mulatham (Abu Amer Al-Libi in last week’s report). The judges in Daesh’s courts, overseen by “emir” Abu Omar Al-Tunisi, are identified as Walid al-Farjani, and Fawzi Muhammad Al-Eyat, both Libyans from Sirte.
Below in rank are the Islamic Police, under the command of Abu Hamza Al-Misri, and the military leader Abu Salam Al-Libi and the Hisbah (religious police) under Abu Abdullah Al-Misri.
One contradiction to last week’s report: Hasan Karami, known as Abu Muawiya, is identified by Abu Obeid as the head of Istitba, whose role he says includes preaching, lessons, and offering opportunity for repentance to those found to have transgressed (istitba). In last week’s report, this position was reported occupied by Abu Hifs Al-Tunisi, while Hasan Karami was identified in that report as a “legal official.”
According to Abu Obeid’s information, Daesh has approximately 2,000 fighters in Libya, who receive a “quasi-monthly” salary of 200 dinars (approx. $145 USD) for the unmarried with 400 dinars (approx. $290) paid most months to those who are married. Much of the funding for this is paid from locally obtained “booty” (ghana’im). [AkhbarLibya]
An Egyptian police officer who traveled to Libya to join Daesh was killed in last week’s fighting in the major oil port of Sidra, the Libyan Center for Terrorism Studies has announced. In 2014 armed groups in Iraq had announced falsely that the ex-officer, Ahmad Al-Douri, was killed in Iraq, where he was known as “Abu Muaz Al-Misri.” He then traveled to Libya to fight with Daesh as “Abu Muaz Al-Qaraani” in the middle of last year. The Center announced earlier that Daesh has been using false declarations of fighters’ deaths as part of its strategy for moving its followers from place to place. [AkhbarLibya]
Libya’s Special Deterrence Force arrested an unspecified group people in Tripoli on Monday on suspicion of belonging to Daesh, a security source said. [AfriGate]
Daesh says one of its snipers killed a Libyan armed group fighter in the Laithi area in Benghazi. [ADI]
Algeria. Daesh says its terrorists attacked a counter-terrorism police center in Tablat in northeast coastal Algeria yesterday. [A3maq]
Somalia. Daesh publishes a video message from its terrorists in Libya to the Somali people. [Archive]
Other countries
Italy. The Chairman of the Defense Committee of the Italian Parliament has called for the establishment of a joint Western-Russian operations room to combat Daesh in Libya, saying in remarks to the press that he backs the establishment of such an entity once a Libyan government of national accord is formed. [AkhbarLibya]
SOCIAL MEDIA SOURCES
Facebook Page of the Day
An Iraqi pro-Daesh page
Daesh Twitter Accounts of the Day
https://twitter.com/ISIS____TNT1111
https://twitter.com/elsengaby35
https://twitter.com/munteasdert
