July 19, 2016
Today’s Major Developments
Five minister resignations formalized in Baghdad
Iraqi troops reported arriving near Hawija for possible offensive.
Reports in northwest Anbar, Hawija, Mosul say some Daesh members are moving out.
Coalition conducts 18 airstrikes on Manbij area; some may have caused major civilian casualties.
REPORTS FROM IRAQ
NATIONAL NEWS
Prime Minister Abadi’s office issued a statement saying the Prime Minister has accepted the resignation of the Ministers of Oil, Transportation, Interior, Construction, and Water Resources. These ministers had submitted their resignations at different times over the past several months. No further details were provided. [Mada]
The Council of Ministers gave all government employees Tuesday and Wednesday off because of the high temperatures that reached 50 degrees Centigrade (122 F.). [Sumaria]
The Iraqi Minister of Defense arrived in DC on Monday to participate in a Coalition meeting. [Sumaria]
Former Prime Minister Maliki launched a verbal attack on both Sadr and Saudi Arabia. Maliki says Sadr is trying to create a Shia-Shia conflict. He also accused Saudi Arabia and other regional countries of trying to create another “Daesh” for when Daesh is defeated. [Arabi21]
DaeshDaily comment. We agree with Maliki on both counts. However, some of his own decisions and corruption in his government helped to facilitate the rise of Daesh.
The Minister of Justice says there are convicts who were sentenced to death a long time ago but were not executed because they belong to a certain political party. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Most likely he refers to the Sadrists. Many Sadrist militia leaders were captured and convicted during Maliki’s days.
The Dijla Operations Commander says the vehicle bomb used in the Karrada terrorist attack came from Diyala but it was rigged with explosives in an area near the explosion in Baghdad. [Mada]
Australia’s Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull met US Vice President Joe Biden in Sydney for talks on terrorism, military engagement in Iraq, and trade relations. Mr. Turnbull told reporters afterwards that one of the most important objectives in Iraq now was ensuring that police could keep the peace in areas liberated from terrorist groups.
Australia makes one of the largest contributions to the Coalition fighting Daesh, including:
– 300 people in the Building Partner Capacity mission at Taji training Iraqi Army personnel;
– The Special Operations Task Group comprising 80 people, which provides advice and assistance to the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service;
– The 400-person Air Task Group which is conducting airstrikes, and providing airborne command and control and refueling capabilities against Daesh in Iraq and Syria.
Another 15 Australian personnel will be sent to Iraq, based at Camp Taji north of Baghdad, to take over artillery rocket and mortar operations from another group within the Coalition forces.
Australians will also train Iraqi police, both local and federal, as well as border guards. [ABC]
The Coalition says it conducted 10 airstrikes on Daesh targets in Iraq, around Mosul (4), Qayara (2), and Tal Afar (1); and around Baghdadi (2), and Hit (1)). [InherentResolve]
BAGHDAD
Security-related incidents reported
North (Tarmiya, Taji, etc.)
Iraqi forces raided a Daesh guesthouse in Tarmiya and destroyed a vehicle bomb that was prepared to attack Baghdad. [MoD Website]
Northeast (Adhamiya, etc.)
A security source says unknown armed men stopped a vehicle that belongs to a money exchange office in the Suleikh area and killed one person and kidnapped two, stealing 6 million dollars. The source says the armed men used an RPG in the operation. [Baghdadia]
An MoI source says one person was killed and six wounded when an IED exploded near a commercial area in Hay Ur. [Mada]
East (Sadr City, New Baghdad, etc.)
An MoI source says the body of a Sunni tribal leader was found shot in the Ma’amel area, 3 days after he was kidnapped from Habibiya. [Mada]
The Sadrist militia, Saraya Al-Salam, says it found 14 rockets in the Ma’amel area that were prepared to attack Baghdad (photos). [Ghad]
Southeast (Mada’in, etc.)
An MoI source says two people were killed and eight wounded when an IED exploded near a café in the Old Diyala Bridge area. [Mada]
A security source says one person was killed and four wounded when an IED exploded near a commercial area on Barid Street in Mada’in. [Maalomah]
South (Dora, Mahmudiya)
An MoI source says an IED exploded on a Ministry of Trade bus in the Hor Rijab area, killing two employees and wounding four. [Mada]
Iraqi Army 23rd brigade destroyed 2 Daesh guesthouses and 10 IEDs in the Ma’ajna area. The same brigade destroyed 6 guesthouses and defused 4 IEDs in the Akhsaf area. [BOC Facebook Page]
Iraqi Army 55th brigade found 6 IEDs in the Islah area. [BOC Facebook Page]
Iraqi forces destroyed 2 Daesh guesthouses and 10 IEDs in the Baijiya area. [MoD Website]
West (Mansour, Ghazaliya, Abu Ghraib)
An MoI source says a PMF fighter was killed and three others wounded when an IED exploded on their civilian vehicle in Abu Ghraib. [Mada]
An MoI source says an MoI officer was killed when a sticky IED exploded under his vehicle in Ghazaliya. [Mada]
An IFP unit found 2 IEDs in addition to other weapons and explosives in the Zaidan area. [BOC Facebook Page]
Total Baghdad incidents reported: 14 (Includes only incidents reported)
ANBAR
Falluja
Iraqi forces defused 5 booby-trapped houses, 122 IEDs and 6 explosives vests, and found an explosive factory in addition to large quantities of explosives in the Falluja military sector. [BOC Facebook Page]
DaeshDaily comment. Apparently these Falluja cleanup days are now a daily routine, but that should not diminish their importance. They show the extent of Daesh efforts to slow Iraqi troop advances and make Falluja unlivable for its residents after Daesh left. They also show, especially as evidenced by the numerous factories, explosives supplies, etc. that Falluja was used as a major military supply area. Defusing houses and IEDs is dangerous work in which mistakes are fatal, and a relatively small group of people has been taking the risks to do this work for a long time now, with no break in sight and not enough public credit.
Ramadi
The IWMC says the IAF conducted airstrikes on Daesh in Jazeera Khaldiya, destroying 2 headquarters and killing more than 20 terrorists. [Baghdadia]
A spokesman of the Anbar Tribes Fighters says Iraqi forces destroyed 4 Daesh hideouts in the Tarabsha area northwest of Ramadi. [Mawazin]
Hit/Haditha
A tribal PMF commander says the Dolab Police Station was reopened, All of the residents remained in their houses after the area was liberated. He also says Iraqi forces will start moving west to liberate more areas in western Anbar in the coming hours. [Mada]
Northwest Anbar
A tribal PMF commander says Daesh surprisingly vacated some of its locations in Anah, Rawa, and Al-Qa’im, apparently in anticipation of Iraqi forces’ attack on the cities. He suggested that the move may also be attributed to Daesh’s losses in Dolab and the heavy IAA attacks on Daesh positions in the area. He also says Daesh is suffering from the siege as Iraqi forces have cut off Daesh supply lines in western Anbar. [Maalomah]
SALAHUDDIN
Shirqat
A JOC source says the IAF destroyed a Daesh car rigging factory in Hay Al-Askari in Shirqat, killing 8 terrorists and destroying a vehicle and 3 motorcycles. The IAF destroyed a Daesh communications tower in the Shirqat silo, killing 3 terrorists, and destroyed a Daesh hisbah office in Shirqat, killing 15 terrorists and wounding 7. [Mada]
A security source says unknown armed men targeted the vehicle of the Daesh security official in Shirqat, killing his father and his brother. [Sumaria]
A Salahuddin CoR member warns of a humanitarian catastrophe and urges the central government to provide basic support for the people who are leaving Daesh-controlled areas in north Salahuddin. He also says people are walking long distances to reach Iraqi forces and the government should at least provide buses for them. [Sumaria]
Tikrit
Iraqi forces captured a man wanted on terrorism charges in Tikrit. [MoD Website]
Iraqi forces captured 2 women who were working for the Daesh hisbah in the Hajjaj area north of Tikrit. [MoD Website]
Samarra
The IFP Commander says his troops found an IED and explosives cache in the Jalam area near Samarra. [Harbi]
Tooz
A Peshmerga source says Kurdish forces shot down a Daesh recon drone west of Tuz Khurmatu (photos). [BasNews]
DIYALA
The MoI says the Diyala Police captured 3 terrorist networks during the month of Ramadan, in addition to capturing 6 suicide terrorists and 2 vehicle bombs that were intended to attack Baquba and Al-Khalis. [Ghad]
Northern Diyala
Daesh says it attacked an Iraqi Army checkpoint in the Nafut Khana area in northeast Diyala, killing one soldier and wounding two. [JustPaste]
KIRKUK
Kirkuk
A Kirkuk police commander says his troops captured 3 men wanted on terrorism charges in Kirkuk city. [Sumaria]
A security source says the Asayesh (Kurdish security) captured 13 men wanted on terrorism charges in Kirkuk during the last few days, including one close to Mulla Shwan, a notable Kurdish Daesh leader. [Sumaria]
Hawija
The IWMC says the IAF destroyed a Daesh car-rigging factory near the technical institute in Hawija, in addition to a Daesh hideout and a large weapons and explosives storehouse. [Baghdadia]
A local source says Daesh terrorists in Hawija are shaving their beards and moving toward areas outside the district with their families, in anticipation of an Iraqi forces attack. The source also says people in Hawija are smoking cigarettes again in the streets. The source also says large Iraqi Army military reinforcements arrived to the District. [Etejah]
A Peshmerga source says large Iraqi Army reinforcements arrived in Kirkuk governorate to participate in the Hawija liberation. [BasNews]
NINEWA
Mosul
The IWMC says Daesh leaders have left the houses they took from civilians in Mosul and gone to unknown locations, fearing the Iraqi attack on the city. It also says the fear barrier has been broken and the people of Mosul are clashing with Daesh. It says that the Arabic letter “M”, which symbolizes resistance against Daesh, is written on houses and on government buildings in the city. It also says local Daesh members are trying to improve their reputation before the post-Daesh period by telling other citizens they were forced to obey Daesh orders. [AIN]
Local sources in Mosul confirm that Daesh terrorists are in chaos in Mosul, and its leaders have fled the city. The sources say people of Mosul attacked the house of Baghdadi’s medical doctor, but since Daesh is trying to ease the tension it didn’t arrest or kill people.
However, one local activist says Daesh members are talking to people about leaving Mosul but still will kill anyone who is working with Iraqi forces. Daesh members have been quoted as saying that Daesh will go back to conducting assassinations against people in the city like they used to do before 2014. [ARA]
DaeshDaily comment. The new face of Daesh is already appearing in the media. The local backers will do exactly what they did before 2014. They have a lot of support in the region, and neighboring countries will not be happy to see a stable Iraq.
A local activist says Daesh cut off internet services to houses in Mosul except for public cafes. [ARA]
The IWMC says the IAF destroyed a Daesh headquarters in Safina village in Mosul’s Shura subdistrict, killing 10 terrorists and destroying rockets and mortars. [Baghdadia]
A PMF commander says Daesh executed 3 leaders of Hamas Al-Iraq in Mosul, accusing them of betraying their allegiance. He says the 3 terrorists left for Syria after 2010, before coming back to Mosul and joining Daesh. Hamas Al-Iraqi was one of the armed groups that participated in the violence in Diyala after 2006. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. Many of the armed groups that claimed to be “resistance” against the Coalition since 2003 continued their attacks on Iraqi civilians and security forces afterward. When Daesh dominated the scene, the simply joined it or got killed. Now, the tide is shifting again, and they will change loyalties again. Iraq has a lot to deal with after Daesh is defeated.
Local sources say a group of 6 armed men shot and killed 4 Daesh hisbah members in a downtown market in the Bab Al-Saray neighborhood in Mosul. [Maalomah]
A Ninewa Police captain says Coalition warplanes bombed a Daesh military camp and a weapons storehouse in Badoush, 35 km (22 miles) west of Mosul, killing 13 terrorists. [BasNews]
Makhmur/Qayara
Daesh says it destroyed an Iraqi Army armored vehicle near the Qayara Airfield residential compound south of Qayara. [A3maq]
Northwest (Tal Afar, Sinjar)
The French Minister of Defense says French warplanes launched airstrikes on Daesh in Tal Afar as part of Coalition efforts. He says France doesn’t announce such news every day, but since it joined the Coalition it has launched daily airstrikes on Daesh. [Sumaria]
SOUTHERN IRAQ
Qadisiya
The Qadisiya Police Chief says a man wanted on terrorism charges was captured at a checkpoint at the Diwaniya entrance. [Ghad]
Kerbala
The Kerbala Provincial Council approved a resolution to return the displaced families to their liberated areas within one month. The Council justified its decision by security concerns and by fear from “demographic changes”. [Sumaria]
DaeshDaily comment. There is no bigger sign of selfishness than this. Why do you want people to return to booby-trapped houses and areas with no basic services? The central government should be firm and talk to these people.
Basra
The media office of the Basra Court says a man was sentenced to death for detonating 2 vehicle bombs in Basra that killed or wounded many civilians in 2014. [Sumaria]
REPORTS FROM SYRIA
The Coalition says it conducted airstrikes on 21 Daesh targets in Syria, 18 of them in and around Manbij (18). The others were in Mare’ (2) and Deir Ez-Zor (1)). [InherentResolve]
Northeast (Hasaka, Raqqa)
The YPG says Daesh continued its attacks on the area between Ain Eissa and the area southeast of the Tishrin Dam. It says the YPG killed 14 terrorists, wounded 8, and captured 1, and destroyed a heavy machine gun and a motorcycle. [Hawar]
Daesh says it continued its attack on the YPG east of the Tishrin Dam and cut off the YPG supply lines between the dam and Ain Eissa. Daesh says it killed thirty-four YPG fighters and wounded others, capturing SUVs and heavy machine guns. Daesh says 233 YPG fighters have been killed since Sunday. [A3maq]
The YPG says five of its fighters were killed in the attacks near Ain Eissa. [ARA]
The Syrian Observatory for Human rights says eleven Syrian Democratic Forces soldiers were killed in the attacks. [SyriaHR]
Daesh says fifty-seven people were wounded, including women and children, by 2 Russian airstrikes on Tabaqa city, west of Raqqa. [A3maq]
A 17-year-old boy who fled Daesh in Raqqa was killed by the Turkish Army as he was trying to cross the border west of Tal Al-Abyad. [Hawar]
Northwest (Aleppo, Idlib)
Manbij campaign. There appears to have been a civilian disaster in Toukhar Kabir village northeast of Manbij, reportedly caused by Coalition airstrikes. One report said more than 100 civilians, mostly women and children, were killed, and many others wounded. [Qasioun]
A Syrian Government news agency says two hundred people were killed, mostly women and children, in French airstrikes on Manbij. [SyriaNow] The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs asked the UN Security Council to condemn the French airstrike on Manbij. [Rudaw]
Daesh says more than 160 civilians, mostly women and children, were killed by “American” strikes in Toukhar Kabir. [A3maq]
DaeshDaily comment. Daesh refers to all Coalition airstrikes as “American” airstrikes.
The Manbij Military Council made a somewhat defensive-sounding response, arguing multiple points.
It says its initial information was that this particular area of the city was empty of civilians (which seem to imply that MMC relayed this to the Coalition). However, it also argued that Daesh has continued to use civilians as human shields—and that Daesh tried to camouflage its troops to make them less detectible. It also complained about the media coverage. It says Daesh is still holding tens of thousands of civilians as human shields and this is not reported by the media, which is thereby providing a cover-up for terrorism. It says these media outlets have ignored the suffering of Manbij people for years under Daesh’s brutality, and are unwilling to talk about the current suffering of people used as human shields.
MMC also said there has been a lot of exaggeration regarding the number of civilians killed, especially in Toukhar Kabir. [Hawar]
DaeshDaily comment. The Hawar media organization is known to be close to the Kurdish YPG, which is believed unofficially important to this operation even though its name has been downplayed in the Manbij campaign to placate Turkey. So Hawar is not quite an objective source. In fact, the total deaths reported, by three different sources, are not so far apart. Amidst the confusion of media statements and counter statements, a few things seem likely: That a very large number of Syrian civilians died; that they were killed by Coalition warplanes; and that the MMC contributed significantly to the disaster. This calls for a serious investigation by the Coalition, and in the meantime for more independent journalistic coverage of what happened.
The Syrian Arab Coalition captured a Daesh headquarters July 17 in western Manbij. The headquarters, located in a hospital, was being used as a command center and logistics hub.
The SAC also seized a significant amount of territory in the city, which provided civilians the opportunity to escape. According to a CENTCOM report, it continues to fight Daesh on four fronts within the city of Manbij, carefully clearing territory toward the city center while ensuring the safety of any civilians who still remain. [CENTCOM]
A separate report said Manbij Military Council troops advanced on the western side of the city after heavy battles with Daesh that killed 16 terrorists, and that fighting also continues in Hay Al-Hazawana in north Manbij. [Hawar]
Manbij Military Council troops stopped a Daesh attempt to plant IEDs north and northeast of the city, killing 2 terrorists, and forcing the rest to flee. YPG snipers also killed 3 Daesh terrorists northwest of Manbij city center. In another military section, a Daesh group tried to advance in the Sajur River area in an attempt to break the siege on the city. Coalition warplanes attacked them, killing 85 terrorists and destroying a military vehicle. Battles also continued between MMC fighters and a Daesh group that fled and hid in south Manbij. 12 Daesh terrorists were killed. [Hawar]
Daesh says American warplanes conducted extensive indiscriminate airstrikes on villages south of Manbij. [A3maq]
Daesh publishes photos of the results of the airstrikes. [DawaAlhaq]
Daesh says its snipers killed fifteen YPG fighters in the Manbij area. [JustPaste]
Mustafa Mohammad, a Ronahi TV correspondent, died from wounds he sustained from a Daesh land mine in Manbij city on July 13th (video). [Hawar] [Hawar]
Daesh says twelve civilians were killed and forty wounded by “American” airstrikes on Himyar Labda village north of Manbij. [A3maq] Daesh had mentioned the airstrikes yesterday without giving exact numbers of casualties
A video filmed from a YPG ground source of an American airstrike on Daesh in the Manbij area [Hawar]
Other northwest Syria reports. Nour Al-Din Al-Zenki Movement, an opposition group that belongs to the Syrian Revolutionary Command Council says that the beheading of a young Palestinian boy by its fighters was an “individual error” and it had opened an investigation. Social media sources show the video of fighters beheading a 16-year-old boy, allegedly for fighting with the Syrian regime in Aleppo. [ARA]
Daesh continued its shelling on Mare’, killing or wounding several civilians and destroying 2 houses. Daesh also tried to sneak into the city, but the opposition groups stopped the attack, killing 2 terrorists and wounding 2 others. [ARA]
Turkey backed opposition groups shelled Tal Rifaat city in Azaz District and surrounding villages, wounding civilians. [Hawar]
A Turkey backed opposition commander says opposition groups, supported by Coalition warplanes, tried to capture Dudyan village north of Aleppo, but Daesh stopped the attack, killing fighters and wounding others. [ARA]
The YPG says it stopped a Turkey-backed opposition group attack on Sheikh Maqsoud on Monday, killing three fighters. [Hawar]
Central and West (Homs, Hama, etc.)
Syrian troops destroyed a Daesh vehicle before it could reach its target north of Fikr village near Silmiya city. [SyriaNow]
Syrian troops advanced east of Hama after battles with Daesh, killing or wounding several terrorists. [SyriaNow]
A military source says Syrian warplanes destroyed Daesh military positions and vehicles east of Hama. [SyriaNow]
East (Deir Ez-Zor)
The Syrian Army destroyed a Daesh headquarters in Sina’a in Deir Ez-Zor. [SyriaNow]
OTHER MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORTS
North Africa
Egypt
A civilian was killed and another civilian and a policeman were killed when an IED exploded on an armored police vehicle on the coastal road in Arish. [ElWatan]
“Security” launched a major campaign on terrorists in Arish, Rafah, and Sheikh Zuweid. [VetoGate]
“Security” captured an Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis spy near the Masoura area in Rafah. [VetoGate]
A security member killed 2 Ansar Bait Al-Maqdis terrorists and burned their motorcycle in Hasinat village south of Sheikh Zuweid. [VetoGate]
A security source says a policeman was wounded by a sniper at a checkpoint in the Sidra area south of Sheikh Zuweid. [VetoGate]
Libya
Northeast
The Libyan special forces spokesman says a soldier was killed and two others wounded by a mortar shell in the Qawarsha area in west Benghazi. [Wasat]
Central coast
The UN General Secretary, Ban Ki-Moon, expressed his concern that Daesh terrorists might flee Sirte and join cells in Libya and surrounding countries. He says there are 2,000-5,000 Daesh terrorists from Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt, Mali, Morocco, and Mauritania now in Libya. A Libyan official says most Daesh terrorists are in sleeper cells in Tripoli and Daesh’s real battle is at the capitol. [Wasat] [AfriGate]
The Libyan National Accord Government Military says it destroyed a Daesh tank in Sirte city. [Wasat]
It also says its troops killed a Senegalese Daesh commander south of Ouagadougou Compound. Nine Libyan soldiers were also wounded in battles near the compound [Wasat]
Daesh publishes photos of battles in Sirte. [JustPaste]
Tunisia
Tunisian authorities captured a takfiri terrorist who threatened Tunisian people with beheadings on its Facebook page in Gafsa. [Tunisien]
The bodies of three of the four Tunisian victims who were killed in the Nice attack arrived in Tunisia. [Tunisien]
Other countries
Cameroon
Daesh says it attacked a Cameroonian Army position in the Fotokol area, killing eight soldiers and wounding others, before returning safely. [JustPaste]
DaeshDaily comment. Daesh doesn’t acknowledge that this attack was by Boko Haram, which has attached the Daesh “brand” to itself. Daesh isn’t even clear on the geography, saying that Fotokol is in southwest Cameroon when in fact it is in the far northwest, near the Nigerian border. As its caliphate loses ground, Daesh seems more desperate to claim credit for mass-murder attacks by other people.
Germany
Daesh says the criminal who stabbed civilians in Germany is “one of its soldiers” and he conducted the operation in response to Daesh’s calls to target the Coalition’s countries. [A3maq]
Daesh published a video of the terrorist pledging allegiance and threatening to conduct an attack in Germany. [A3maq]
DaeshDaily comment. Daesh didn’t issue videos like this about the terrorist attacks in Orlando and Nice. Either Daesh doesn’t have them in the first place, or it wants to use them at a more advantageous time.
SOCIAL MEDIA SOURCES
“Manbij is being annihilated” is a new hashtag of incubator media supporting Daesh. This reflects the complaint noted above by the Manbij Military Council about the media coverage on Manbij. [Twitter]
Videos of the Day
Baghdad. A video of people demonstrating in Karrada, urging the government to reopen the main street closed because of the terrorist attack [Yalla]
Anbar
A Daesh video found in Falluja shows Daesh’s efforts to train young boys using brainwashing techniques. [Al-Wala’]
A video of a Coalition airstrike destroying a Daesh staging area near Baghdadi on June 25th [CJTF]
A video of a 14-year-old boy recruited by Daesh in Rutba [Iraqia]
Salahuddin. A video of Iraqi warplanes destroying Daesh targets in the Shirqat area [MoD]
Ninewa
A video of Saraya Al-Ramah, a local armed group in Mosul, threatening Daesh with swift justice soon. [Mosuliya]
A video of IAA helicopters targeting Daesh near Qayara Airfield. [MoD]
A video of Iraqi forces in Awsaja village [Rudaw]
Syria
A video of a man from Manbij saying Daesh killed his 21-year-old son, a college student, and crucified his body for 3 days south of Manbij after finding the word “Daesh” on his cell phone. [Al-Aan]
DaeshDaily comment. This atrocity shows how much Daesh hates the word “Daesh,” and also shows why they deserve the contempt of the people who use it (including us).
A video of a Coalition airstrike destroying 5 Daesh military positions simultaneously near Manbij on July 5th. [CJTF]
Morocco
A video of Moroccan security arresting a Daesh member in Qali’a. [YouTube]
OTHER DAESH MEDIA
Daesh audio newsletter for today [JustPaste]
