September 25, 2018
Dr. Suad Al-Hilli
MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS
Iraq
CoR Speaker sets Oct. 2 deadline to elect a President [..]
US House passes sanctions on AAH and HHN; bill awaits Senate review [..]
SWAT raid on Anbar Provincial Council for corruption [..]
40 Daesh families in Diyala provided intel on relatives during 2018 [..]
Human rights activist Al-Hilli killed in Basra city [..]
KRG arrested 2,600 between 2014-2016; 680 still awaiting trial [..]
Syria
France asks for UN support for Idlib deal [..]
Bolton says US won’t leave Syria until Iran does [..]
SDF captures Al-Shajla village, shrinking Daesh-held area [..]
Other countries
Bahrain: Bahrain charges 169 for forming “Bahraini Hezbollah” [..]
REPORTS FROM IRAQ
NATIONAL NEWS
New government
Speaker of the CoR Mohammed Al-Halbusi said on Tuesday that October 2 was the deadline to elect a President for Iraq. The PUK has nominated Barham Salih, while the KDP nominated Fuad Hussein. The CoR was originally scheduled to vote on candidates for the Presidency of Iraq on Monday, but the lack of agreement between the PUK and the KDP on the traditionally Kurdish post has postponed the process. [Anadolu]
Anti-Daesh campaign
The Coalition said they had conducted 4 airstrikes in Iraq between September 17 and September 23. Of those, 1 was near Baaj, 1 was “near Rutba,” 1 was “near Anbar,” and 1 was near Makhmur. [InherentResolve]
Sitting PM Haider Al-Abadi said on Tuesday that there had been successful operations against “Daesh stragglers” in the last few days, while noting that terrorism was still a real threat in the region. He was speaking at his weekly press conference. [Sumaria]
Foreign policy
The US House of Representatives passed legislation to sanction 2 PMF militias with ties to Iran, including Asa’eb Ahl Al-Haq (AAH). The independent online newspaper Al-Monitor published a report on Tuesday regarding the bill, in which American politicians expressed their fear that AAH could receive a ministerial portfolio in the next government. Representative Ted Poe (R, Texas) sponsored the measure as an amendment to the Defense Department budget (NDAA); Poe said that his amendment would help counter Iranian influence.
Michael Knights, a fellow at the Washington think tank WINEP, noted that AAH could not plausibly get a major Ministry such as Defense, Interior, or Finance; he said that they would most likely receive a minor Ministry. Knights also noted that Iraqi officials he had met during a June tour of Iraq asked about the wisdom of imposing sanctions on AAH, saying that the officials felt that if sanctions were imposed on AAH rather than on AAH leader Qais Al-Khazali personally, the effect would be to increase AAH members’ sympathy with Al-Khazali and anti-American views. Al-Monitor wrote that many of the current AAH fighters were not part of the movement during its post-2003 targeting of American soldiers, but joined in 2014 to fight Daesh.
The other militia that faces sanctions is Harakat Hezbollah Al-Nujaba (HHN), but they did not run candidates in the last election and will not receive a Ministry. The Senate Foreign Affairs Committee is scheduled to vote on the NDAA on Thursday. [BaghdadToday] [Kurdistan24]
BAGHDAD
Center (Rusafa, Karkh, etc.)
A security source said on Tuesday that personnel from the “Falcons” intelligence unit had defused an IED placed inside a Kia in a garage in central Baghdad. [Sumaria]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded eight Shia people with an IED the Batawiyeen area. [A3maq]
Northwest (Kadhimiya, etc.)
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded eight Shia people by setting off an IED on their bus in the Kadhimiya area. [A3maq]
North (Tarmiya, Taji, etc.)
A security source said on Tuesday that three people had been seriously wounded by an IED explosion in the banking area of north Baghdad. [Sumaria]
Another source, possibly referring to the same incident, specified that three people had been injured by an IED explosion in Shula. [Sumaria]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded ten Shia people by setting off an IED targeting their gathering in the Shula area. [A3maq]
In a different incident, four people were injured by an IED near the north Baghdad “Gate,” variously reported as either a roadside IED or a VBIED. [Sumaria] [Sumaria]
A security source said on Tuesday that two women had been wounded by a roadside IED planted near a market area in Shaab. [Sumaria]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded ten Shia people by setting off an IED targeting their gathering in the Shaab area. [ICDNSep25]
Northeast (Adhamiya, etc.)
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded five Shia people by setting off an IED targeting their gathering in the Talibiya area. It also said it killed or wounded 16 more people and destroyed 20 buses with 2 IEDs in the same area. [A3maq]
East (Sadr City, New Baghdad, etc.)
A security source said Tuesday that one person had been killed and two others wounded by a roadside IED in New Baghdad. [Sumaria]
Southwest (Rasheed, etc.)
A police source said on Tuesday that two civilians were killed by a roadside IED which targeted a gathering of workers in Bayya’. A different security source said only that 4 people were injured. [Sumaria] [Sumaria]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded 20 “PMF members” by setting off an IED targeting their gathering in the Bayya’ area. [A3maq]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded 30 Shia people by setting off an IED targeting their gathering in the Al-Aamel area. [A3maq]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded 20 Shia people by setting of and IED targeting their gathering in the Shurta Raba’a area. [A3maq]
Total Baghdad security incidents reported: 11 (Includes only incidents reported)
Total IED security incidents reported: 11
DaeshDaily comment. This level of violence in Baghdad is notably high compared to recently. However, it should also be noted that the incidents with the “highest” body counts are unconfirmed claims by Daesh.
ANBAR
There was a SWAT raid on the Anbar Provincial Council building in Ramadi on Monday, resulting in the arrest of Mohammed Jabbar, an advisor to the Chairman of the Council, on corruption charges.
On Tuesday, a member of the Anbar Provincial Council, Sabah Karhout, said that the next few days will see the arrest of several corrupt officials, particularly those in the departments of health, education, and other service providers. Karhout singled out the education and health departments as having employees who were “especially” involved in administrative and financial corruption. [BasNews]
Falluja
Daesh said on Tuesday it wounded policemen and damaged their vehicle with 2 IEDs near Al-Hadhra Bridge, in Falluja city. [A3maq]
Rutba
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that two Border Guard members were killed and their vehicle destroyed in a roadside IED explosion near the Arar border crossing to Saudi Arabia.
SALAHUDDIN
On Tuesday, Salahuddin Ops Command announced that they had arrested 3 farmers accused of communication with Daesh, and destroyed 2 Daesh safehouses in Salahuddin Province, which included caches of medical supplies and foodstuffs. The Commander said this was a result of search operations in “the western area” of the province. [Mawazin]
Baiji
The Center for Security Information said on Tuesday that 6 Daesh tunnels, containing 10 IEDs, foodstuffs, and a generator, had been found and destroyed in the Siniya area of Salahuddin Province. [Sumaria] [BaghdadNews]
Tikrit
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that two Salahuddin Police members were killed in a Daesh attack on their military position near Mtaibija.
Daesh said it killed two IFP members, wounded another, and destroyed their vehicle with an IED in the Mtaibija area, on Monday. [ICDNSep25]
Samarra
A DaeshDaily source said on Monday that IFP and Saraya Al-Salam units found large quantities of rockets, shells, and IEDs in 4 tunnels in the Jazeera Samarra desert area. The source also said that 2 Saraya Al-Salam members were killed in clashes with Daesh near Jazeera Samarra.
DIYALA
A security source in Diyala Province said on Tuesday that in 2018, to date, 40 families in Diyala with Daesh ties had come forward to declare their innocence. The source said that the families had come to the security and intelligence services and provided information about the Daesh members in their families to establish their own innocence, saying that some of the families had given “very important information.” [BaghdadToday]
DaeshDaily comment. Presumably, the families in question are seeking to establish their innocence to avoid being expelled from their communities. As we have noted before, this will be an ongoing issue as communities seek to balance re-integration and security concerns.
Central Diyala (Muqdadiya/Abu Saida)
The Commander for the 88th Brigade (PMF) said that they had found a Daesh hideout in the Himrin Hills that had been used as a staging point for Daesh operations. [Shafaaq]
Northern Diyala (Khanaqin, Khalis north)
Daesh said it shot and killed three Iraqi Army members and wounded another in the Umm Talil village, Udhaim subdistrict, on Monday. [A3maq]
Daesh said it killed three IFP members, including a colonel, and wounded two others in an attack on their military positions near the Al-Nasr Al-Oula village, in Jalawla subdistrict, Khanaqin district, on Monday. [ICDNSep25] [A3maq]
KIRKUK
Hawija (Riyadh, Al-Zab, etc.)
A DaeshDaily source said on Monday that a Kata’eb Hezbollah commander and his driver were killed and their vehicle destroyed when a roadside IED exploded near Kadhimiya village, Hawija district.
NINEWA
The Center for Security Information said on Tuesday that units under Ninewa Ops Command had dismantled 4 booby-trapped houses and destroyed 18 IEDs in the villages of Al-Thawrah (west Mosul) and Umm Dhiban (Mosul subdistrict). A separate search covering an area from west Mosul to the Hamdaniya district found 250 120mm mortar shells, which were seized. [BaghdadNews]
The Center for Security Information said on Tuesday that a banker had been arrested on terrorism charges in Ninewa Province. [Sumaria]
Mosul city
Daesh said it killed a PMF intelligence member by detonating a sticky IED under his vehicle in the village of Sahaji, 9 miles west of Mosul, on Saturday. [A3maq]
Mosul District
South (Shura/Qayara)
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that Iraqi Army 20th Division and Ninewa SWAT units ambushed and killed 20 Daesh terrorists in the desert near Shura.
A DaeshDaily source said on Monday that 12 Daesh terrorists in a pickup truck attacked Tal Tiba village, in southern Qayara. The source said the terrorists broke into the house of the mukhtar, who was not present at the time. The source said the terrorists stole 4 sheep before fleeing.
Western Ninewa
Sinjar
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that Yazidi PMF units found a mass grave of Daesh victims in the desert near Al-Karama compound, in Sinjar. The source sent us photos of the mass grave.
Southern Ninewa
Baaj
A DaeshDaily source said on Monday that security units captured 2 Daesh terrorists near Tal Safouk village. The source said the terrorists, both of whom are from west Mosul, had fled from the Dashisha area.
SOUTHERN IRAQ
Basra
Human rights activist Suad Al-Hilli was killed in Basra city by unidentified shooters while riding in a car, according to Basra police office Rafid Al-Nouras. Al-Nouras added that Al-Hilli’s driver was injured in the shooting. [Rudaw]
A DaeshDaily source confirmed on Tuesday that Dr. Suad Al-Hilli, a member of the Al-Wid Human Rights Organization, was shot and killed near a restaurant in Basra city.
DaeshDaily comment. Dr. Al-Hilli was a well-known activist. She was one of the strong voices that demanded better services for Basra. Her death created uproar on social media.
KURDISTAN NEWS
Dindar Zebari, the Coordinator for International Advocacy for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), said in a press conference held in Erbil on Tuesday that 2,652 people had been arrested between 2014 and 2016 on charges of Daesh affiliation (in the Kurdistan Region). He said that of those, 1,100 had been charged and given sentences ranging from 3 years to life imprisonment. According to Zebari, another 870 suspects were not charged and were released, and 682 defendants are currently in the process of being investigated. [Forat]
DaeshDaily comment. The KRG’s independent prosecution of Daesh-related crimes has been an ongoing point of friction between them and Baghdad.
ERBIL
A security source in Erbil Province said that an explosion had occurred on a street in east Erbil city. [Sumaria]
REPORTS FROM TURKEY
(No reports)
REPORTS FROM SYRIA
NATIONAL NEWS
United Nations
On Monday, the French Foreign Minister requested that the UN support the agreement between Turkey and Russia regarding Idlib. He stated that France would support the UN supporting the Russian-Turkish agreement on Idlib. The UN General Assembly will meet on Wednesday, and Idlib will be a main topic of discussion. [EnabBaladi]
Foreign policy
United States
The UK Daily Express wrote that Donald Trump’s goals have changed, and that the elimination of Daesh in Syria would not lead to the US leaving Syria. The newspaper quoted National Security Advisor John Bolton on Tuesday as saying that the majority of US military personnel would stay in Syria as long as the Iranian militias loyal to Bashar Al-Assad remained on Syrian soil. [Dorar]
Anti-Daesh campaign
The Coalition said they had conducted 74 airstrikes in Syria between September 17 and September 23. Of those, all 74 were near Albu Kamal. [InherentResolve]
DaeshDaily comment. The continued high number of strikes around Albu Kamal suggests that the SDF is having difficulties in their final pushes into Daesh-held territory.
Northwest
Afrin/Azaz
On Tuesday, the YPG claimed that it killed 5 Turkish soldiers in Afrin. [Hawar]
Northeast
Hasaka
Clashes occurred between the Syrian Army and the SDF in Hasaka city, after 2 weeks of fighting in Qamishli between the 2 sides that resulted in 15 deaths. Furat reports that the shooting occurred because the Syrian Army kidnapped 2 SDF soldiers. [Dorar]
Daesh said on Monday it shot and killed two SDF members in “Al-Rawi” village, north of the city of Shaddadi. [A3maq]
Daesh said it killed two SDF members and destroyed their motorcycle with an IED on the road to “Al-A’wadh” village, south of Shaddadi, on Sunday. [A3maq]
In another report, Daesh said it killed an SDF member, wounded two others, and damaged their vehicle with an IED on the road to “Al-A’wadh” village, on Sunday. [ICDNSep24]
Daesh said it shot and killed an SDF commander in the Al-Mufti neighborhood of Hasaka city, on Monday. [A3maq]
Central and West
Aleppo
Fighting occurred in Mare’ between the YPG and “Syrian opposition” militias involving heavy weapons. 3 days prior, similar fighting occurred near Azaz. [Qasioun]
Latakia
The SOHR reports there have been clashes in Latakia between the Syrian Army and militants from the Turkistan Islamic Party. An attack resulted in killing at least 3 Syrian Army soldiers. [SyriaHR]
East (Deir Ez-Zor)
The SOHR reported on Tuesday that fighting between the SDF and Daesh is continuing in Al-Susah and Al-Baghouz. [SyriaHR]
Deir Ez-Zor District
On Tuesday, the SDF announced in a statement that they had taken control of the village of Al-Shajla, in Al-Susah subdistrict, near the border with Iraq, after 3 days of fighting against Daesh. [BasNews] [Hawar] [EnabBaladi] [Qasioun]
On Tuesday, Coalition forces carried out airstrikes on the town of Hajin, one of the last Daesh-held areas, killing 21 Daesh members, according to an SDF statement. [BasNews]
Daesh says it killed four SDF members, including two commanders, and damaged their SUV with an IED near the Al-Azraq oilfield, on Saturday. [A3maq]
Mayadin District
Daesh said it wounded four SDF members after attacking their security barrier in Al-Hawayej village with light weapons, on Monday. [A3maq]
Albu Kamal District
On Monday evening, Daesh killed an unspecified number of fighters from Iraqi Hezbollah and destroyed military equipment in Hajin, via a car bomb attack. [Qasioun]
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that SDF units killed 4 Daesh terrorists in heavy fighting near the town of Al-Baghouz.
Daesh said on Monday it killed three SDF members with mortar shells in Al-Baghouz. [ICDNSep24]
Daesh said on Tuesday it targeted SDF positions in Al-Baghouz with 20 mortar shells. [ICDNSep25]
Daesh said on Tuesday it killed or wounded “many” SDF members when a Daesh Iraqi suicide terrorist attacked them with a VBIED in Al-Baghouz. [ICDNSep25]
South
Rif Damashq
SOHR reports that the operations of the Syrian Army, its affiliated militias, and the Lebanese Hezbollah against Daesh in Rif Damashq are ongoing. [SyriaHR]
Suwayda
Local sources report that the Syrian Army replaced their 15th Division with Lebanese Hezbollah fighters and the 5th Division, based on intelligence that these factions would be prepared to begin operations against Daesh in Al-Safa. [Dorar]
A DaeshDaily source said on Tuesday that a pro-government Palestinian militia commander had 6 of his fighters wounded and several others captured in a Daesh ambush near the Al-Safa Hills.
OTHER MIDDLE EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORTS
Neighboring countries
Lebanon
An official with the Lebanese Army reported that on a mission to track a drug dealer in the Hermel Governate, near the Syria-Lebanon border, the Lebanese Army was attacked by unknown fighters. A Lebanese Army soldier was killed and 7 others wounded. [Qasioun]
Bahrain
Bahraini authorities said on Tuesday that 169 people had been charged for forming what they called the “Bahraini Hezbollah.” Ahmed Al-Hamadi, head of the prosecution for terrorist crimes, said that out of the 169 referred to trial, 111 were currently detained. Al-Hamadi said the prosecution had charged them with crimes including establishing and joining a terrorist group, plotting murders, training in weapons and explosives, possession of weapons and explosives without a license, and financing a terrorist group. Al-Jazeera noted that analysts have been skeptical of previous claims of Hezbollah involvement in Bahrain. [Rudaw] [AlJazeera]
North Africa
Libya
Unidentified gunmen raided the local council building in Wadi Zamzam, about 40 km inland, southwest of the city of Sirte. The gunmen reportedly vandalized the office of the head of the local council, destroyed some official documents, and stole others. A source in the office of the local council said that the motive for the break-in could be an ongoing dispute over the appointment of young people to government positions. [Wasat]
General Fawzi Al-Mansouri, Commander of the Gulf (i.e. of Sirte) Military Region and Commander of the Ajdabiya Ops Room, toured the Sidra area and inspected the units stationed there. He said that the tour was to raise the morale of units stationed in Libya’s “Oil Crescent.” [Wasat]
Tunisia
A landmine exploded on Monday night in the military zone of Jebel Ech Chambi (aka Mount Ash-Sha’anbi), a mountain peak in the western state of Kasserine. The explosion killed 2 brothers who were riding an Isuzu truck after collecting firewood at the base of the mountain. [Tunisien]
REPORTS FROM OTHER COUNTRIES
ASIA
On Tuesday, the Head of the Anti-Terrorism Center for the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS, aka “Russian Commonwealth”), General of Police Andrey Novikov, stated that Daesh was “determined” to create a “caliphate” in central Asia’s post-Soviet states, and that it has already been attempting to activate sleeper cells in the region. [Hawar]
Afghanistan
Daesh said it killed 2 Taliban members in an ambush in Khogyani, in Nangarhar Province, eastern Afghanistan, on Saturday. [A3maq]
DAESH MEDIA
On Tuesday, Daesh issued a propaganda video about its attacks in the Kirkuk area. [ICDNSep25]
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