Militants repel Iraqi forces attempt to regain Tikrit

The success of the operation to recover the Mosul Dam seem to encourage the Iraqi army on Tuesday to launch a new assault on the city of Tikrit, also in the hands of the Islamic State (EI). However, by mid-afternoon the maneuver was aborted, highlighting not only the fierce resistance of the extremist group, but also the political fracture in Iraq.

The offense of Tikrit, the third attempt since the EI took that city located 160 kilometers from Baghdad in mid-June, it was loaded with symbolism because it is the home region of Saddam Hussein, the deposed dictator in 2003, however, according military spokesmen reported, extremists received government troops with heavy machine-gun and artillery fire by the South, while moving to avoid surround the west flank had planted mines and snipers.

Although Army units had some involvement , recovery of Mosul Dam was led by Kurdish forces (Peshmerga), and supported by the American aviation. Despite its success, the bomb squad on Tuesday were still cleaning up booby traps around. In the case of Tikrit, however, only the Army was supported by Shiite militiamen.

“The problem is that recruit volunteers untrained therefore have many victims and affects morale,” says Khaled Salih Kurdish political scientist in a conversation with the country.

Before meeting the suspension of the offensive, Salih was skeptical: ” They have tried before without result.” However, this man who for 12 years was an adviser to the Kurdish prime minister and now vice chancellor of the University of Kurdistan in Erbil, stresses that ” murderers delivered and highly ideological ” face.

“If America expands its air cover will change the game, but do not expect that to occur while al-Maliki remains in scene ” he says.

The serious political split that underlies many of the problems facing Iraq also marks the steps of the peshmerga. As Nawzad Hadi told reporters, Governor of Erbil, the Kurdish officials are convinced that the half a million displaced as hosts of the region, especially those belonging to minorities, can not return to their homes while the EI control Mosul. However, his forces are not going to move to that city from the dam “unless there is consensus between communities ” (referring to the Sunni Arabs, a majority there, and Shiite Arab majority in the country).

“Mosul is not in the list of territories claimed by the Government of Kurdistan and not rely on the Arab population,” Salih, who nevertheless recognizes the Kurdish interest in maintaining “the security of the borders of the region,” he explains.

“Only a deal would make sense with all the local leaders and the Iraqi army, supported by the United States “, he argues. “It’s a difficult area. If American forces failed, why would they do the peshmerga? “

Meanwhile, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) launched Wednesday from a huge logistical operation ” by land, sea and air ” to bring all possible assistance to half a million displaced by the fighting in the northern Iraq. For four days, an air bridge between Aqaba (Jordan) and Erbil (Iraq) and other stores carry goods, followed by road convoys from Turkey and Jordan, ocean shipments from Iran via Dubai.

“It’s a premier humanitarian emergency and a disaster,” said Tuesday UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards introducing the plan.

UNHCR estimates that 1.2 million people have been forced from their homes across Iraq so far this year. About 200,000 of them have taken refuge in the Kurdistan region since early August, when the EI launched a new offensive that has especially affected minorities.

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Posted by Maleeha Tareen on Aug 21 2014. Filed under World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.