6th Sep: Photos appear on twitter showing Abu Bakr al Baghdadi as having been killed in a US airstrikes. However, the authenticity of the photos and the news, which the Pentagon has denied, are being questioned:
http://shoebat.com/2014/09/06/examining-photos-killing-isis-caliph-al-baghdadi/
However Kurdish Bus news is reporting that he was injured and is being treated near the Syrian Iraqi border:
http://m.basnews.com/en/News/Details/Islamic-State-Leader-al-Baghdadi–Not-Dead-/33223
Iraqi airstrikes and artillery strikes on hospitals in Kirkuk and Fallujah, details mentioned below, could have been a follow up of news of Baghdadi being injured and needing medical assistance or senior members of Daash. There could have been leads suggesting that he was there. Both bombings have resulted in a high number of civilian casualties.
6th Sep: The Iraqi Ministry of Defence states that it has targeted a number of senior leaders of Daash in air strikes in Tal Afar district, west of Mosul.
7th Sep: Baldrouz district in Diyala is facing a water crisis. It has been under Daash siege and water has been cut from the district for 10 days now. Lawmakers are demanding swift action by the government to save trapped civilians.
7th Sep: Haider al Abadi has till Tuesday to form a Government or he risks being dropped and the task assigned to another
7th: Mullah Khalid, of the Sunni Iraqi Scientists Group, calls on all political parties to compromise and speed up government formation
7th Sep: Hussain Al Sharistani, the former Minister of Energy, is tipped to be the next Minister of Education and Scientific Research of Iraq.
7th Sep: Haider Al Abadi asks that the Ministries of Oil and Transport shoud be given to Basra and that political blocs can suggest names of lawmakers from Basra
7th Sep: US airplanes carried out airstrikes on Daash positions on the outskirts of Haditha Dam. The airstrikes are aimed at degrading Daash’s capacity to stage offensive operations against government security forces and tribal fighters defending the dam and the town of Haditha.
The Iraqi army is able to regain control of Barwana town outside of Haditha after American air strikes weaken Daash
7th Sep: Rohani praises the sacrifice of the Iraqi people, the Marjas (Sistani), and points out that without Iranian help, material and “people,” the relative security in Iraq would not have been possible.
7th Sep: Peshmergas retake Zartak mountain outside Mosul in a short battle of 30 minutes that leave between 20 and 25 Daash fighters dead. The Peshmergas gave credit to American air strikes for having made their task “very easy.”
7th Sep: After repeated failed attempts the Iraqi a Army backed by militias us planning to attack Tikrit again. Daash has prepared its defences in anticipation of any assault.
7th Sep: The Iraqi Airforce carries out 11 airstrikes in Anbar and claims to have killed more than 40 Daash fighters and another 35 in Babil
7th Sep: Peshmerga forces attack and kill a would be suicide car bomber on the outskirts of Jalawala. The terrorist tried to target a Peshmerga checkpoint besieging Daash inside Jalawala town.
7th Sep: Mortar attacks on the Al Zarkosh tribe in Hamrin, north east of Baqouba have continued for the seventh day today. Mortar strikes left two young girls dead. The tribe is warning of retribution unless government forces stop “Daash” from continuing the daily attacks.
7th Sep: Iranian Foreign Minister, Javad Zarif, states that it is the United States that is not being serious about Daash. He spoke about the two faced approach of the United States where it supported Daash in Syria and has shown little or no seriousness of attacking Daash in Iraq.
7th Sep: The lawyer of Saddam’s former henchman Tariq Aziz Badie Izzat, States that Maliki’s office had shown willingness to allow the release of Tariq Aziz and Sultan Hashim from custody.
7th Sep: Syrian tactics: The Iraqi Air Force bombs Hawija hospital west of Kirkuk while the Iraqi army launches a rocket/artillery strike on a Fallujah medical facility
7th Sep: Daash warns residents of Northern Tikrit district that if they do not pledge allegiance, their homes will be destroyed
Related:
6th Sep: Daash executes, by beheading, a second Lebanese soldier it kidnapped in Arsal. Daash stated that the soldier had attempted to escape
Further Reading:
A young Yazidis girl talks about her escape:
http://news.yahoo.com/yazidi-girl-tells-escape-islamic-state-kidnappers-121609719.html
RE: Abu Bakr al Baghdadi as having been killed in a US airstrikes.
Is this a joke? He is the commander that reports directly to the cia. Just like Bin Laden reported directly to the cia and Brzezinski. Of the 5 top commanders of the IS, 4 are connected to the US. This is like saying 3 of the hijackers living on US bases were there only because it was used temporarily as the YMCA due to water leakage from their pool and the strip club was only used because of the great sandwiches they served.
@Mohamed
“Under Maliki the Iraqi troops were incompetent. Under Abadi within 2 weeks, they have become competent and beating the asses of ISIS?”
Wanted to clarify two things:
First: The Iraqi army is still ” nominally” under Maliki’s command, till and if Abadi takes office
And
Second: They are still as incompetent. One example is that they have not been able to take back Tikrit yet after many failed attempts.
So what has changed? Only one thing of significance: Iranian involvement, you can also consider US air raids being a result of Iran’s involvement. Or America would have risked being sidelined entirely. And Iraq is probably requesting US air strikes with Iran’s approval. As the Peshmergas said: “the Americans made the job easier.”
The Iraqi army’s operations are probably being handled by the Iranians and the militias supporting the troops, providing much needed ferocity and morale boost, are Iranian proxies.
Salam brother Mindfriedo,
Thank you for you answer and I have reflected on it a lot, like you have reflected on my question a lot too, before answering it. Let us reflect some more.
In more than three years ISIS with various names and faces have not been able to defeat Assad. One reason being that Assad has superior Air Force covering the Ground Forces. ISIS has no Air Cover, time after time both Russia and China denied the Empire Air Cover, both Russia and China from learning their lessons in Libya.
All three Iran, Iraq and Hezbollah helped Syria for more than three years, thoroughly destroying ISIS in Syria. And, then the ISIS appeared overnight in Iraq. Neither Maliki nor the Iran need the American Air Force, the Syrian Air Force is enough to do the job, as both Syria and Iraq share the Air Corridor.
Does Iran need USA? Does Iran need USA in Iraq? Does Iran need USA in Syria to bomb ISIS? Has Iran become so weak? Would Russia allow USA in Iraq Air Space?
There are lots of illusions going on. Please see my next post.
Best regards,
Mohamed.
Salam dear Mindfriedo,
Reflect some more!
You once mentioned that Saudi Arabia has about 30% to 40% foreign workers. You know Dubai has 92% to 96% foreign worker.
What does the above does to the culture?
What does the above does to the religion?
What does the above does to the infrastructure?
Many, many more?
ISIS supposedly has $2 Billion in Revenue:
1. What are ISIS expense against this revenue.
2. What is the % of foreign workers involved?
3. How they are paid by ISIS?
4. How they remit their money to their home countries?
5. The infrastructure needed to sustain these many foreign and local labor forces?
6. Including medical facilities?
7. How is the local labor force paid.
8. Due to Oil Embargo on Iran, they could not sell their Oil, and they were cut off from SWIFT.
9. How is ISIS selling their Oil and getting their money? Think of the total process involved in selling? Think of the total process involved in getting their money?
I can go on and on, but you catch my drift. There are lots of illusions involved. All the countries including Iran are part of this illusion.
Best regards,
Mohamed.
@Mindfriedo said: Only one thing of significance: Iranian involvement, you can also consider US air raids being a result of Iran’s involvement. Or America would have risked being sidelined entirely. And Iraq is probably requesting US air strikes with Iran’s approval. As the Peshmergas said: “the Americans made the job easier.”
Salam brother Mindfriedo,
Has Iran become so weak that it will roll over for USA. The same USA, who have created ISIS and supporting it in Syria against Assad. For more than three years Iran is fighting the USA monster and now it is so week that it requires USA support.
Here is an excellent article by M. K. Bhadrakumar, read it carefully and please reflect on it for a long while.
The title is misleading:
Iran, Gulf Arab dither on Islamic State
Best regards,
Mohamed.
Mohamed,
The involvement of the Americans, from Iran and Syrias’s perspective, is meainly for the benefit of the Saudis and the Qatar is. The theory is that seeing the US airforce pummel these goons that the gulfies have poured billions into would accelerate their progress to what George Bush would call a ‘decision point’.
Masoud
How many times did ‘al-Zaqawi’ die, or even, in one amazing instance, grow back a severed leg, before his usefulness was over and his CIA contract was terminated with extreme prejudice? I’m sure that there’s a steady supply of ‘al-Baghdadis’ just like all the Osamas they used after the original went to meet the All High.
@Masoud: The involvement of the Americans, from Iran and Syrias’s perspective, is mainly for the benefit of the Saudis and the Qatar is. The theory is that seeing the US airforce pummel these goons that the gulfies have poured billions into would accelerate their progress to what George Bush would call a ‘decision point’.
Salam brother Masoud,
I fully agree and concur with you.
Shia demanding their rights in Bahrain and Yemen has nothing to do with Iran. You are right that, they no longer can blame this on Iran.
Thus, sectarian is becoming past and lots of things are changing in Middle East and GCC (gulfies).
At the micro level there will be sectarian, as it has always been. Allah to unify the Ummah.
Best regards,
Mohamed.
@Masoud: The involvement of the Americans, from Iran and Syrias’s perspective, is mainly for the benefit of the Saudis and the Qatar is. The theory is that seeing the US airforce pummel these goons that the gulfies have poured billions into would accelerate their progress to what George Bush would call a ‘decision point’.
Salam brother,
This is what Syed Hassan Nasrallah is trying to teach the Lebanese too. It is finally sinking in to the young Saad Hariri.
Best regards,
Mohamed.
Would Russia allow USA in Iraq Air Space?
Correction: It should read:
Would Russia allow USA in Syria Air Space?
Hasn’t Russia learned it lessons form Libya?
Best regards,
Mohamed.
Dozens of Martyrs, Injured as Yemeni Police Fire at Protesters in Sanaa
“Dozens were martyred and injured as Yemeni police fired at peaceful protesters in Sanaa on Tuesday.
Agence France Presse quoted a source in Ansarullah opposition movement as saying that at least seven protesters were martyred as police fired live rounds at demonstrators.
Al-Manar correspondent inYemeni police attack protesters in Sanaa Sanaa, Khalil al-Omari, reported that masked militants took part in the shooting on protesters, denying reports that the anti-government protesters were trying to storm the government headquarters.
Al-Omari meanwhile, assured that the protesters were peaceful, noting that the police shot at the protesters as they were taking part in demonstration that took off from Change square in the capital.
The police also used tear gas against the protesters, our correspondent noted.
Meanwhile, spokesman of Ansarullah movement, Mohammad Abdusalam stressed that the attack on Change Square is criminal act, noting that the government was “digging its own grave.”
He also emphasized that the protesters were peaceful, denying any attempt by the protesters to storm the government headquarters.
The video below shows Yemeni police firing at peaceful protesters.”
Would a U.S./NATO War in Syria Be Legal in International Law?
“Efforts are being made in Congress to give President Barack Obama the formal authority to conduct air strikes in Syria against ISIL. Vice President Joe Biden is now talking, as well, about a concerted and long-term NATO response to the brutal fundamentalist movement, which controls desert territory and some oil resources in eastern Syria and northern and western Iraq.
The US air strikes in Iraq are probably not problematic in international law, though it is not clear that the government of out-going prime minister Nouri al-Maliki formally requested them. The Kurdistan Regional Government certainly did, but whether it has the authority, as a super-province of Iraq, to bring in a foreign power to conduct military operations is unclear in the Iraqi constitution. The Iraqi parliament would certainly have overwhelmingly voted to bring the US in if it had held a vote on the matter; I can’t find that it did. Still, the incoming prime minister Haydar al-Abadi certainly wants the intervention as would his cabinet, which will give ex post facto bilateral legality to the action.
……………………………”