The Islamic State has taken hundreds of hostages as it falls back into its Iraqi stronghold of Mosul, bolstering its inventory of civilian human shields with 295 Iraqi Security Forces troops kidnapped last week.
Contents: Iraq begins battle to recapture Mosul from ISIS; Sectarian violence may interfere with recapture of Mosul
Iraqi forces secured the southern edge of the Islamic State group stronghold of Fallujah on Sunday, two weeks after the launch of an operation to recapture the city, the Iraqi special forces commander overseeing the operation said.
The Daily Mail continues to release bits of a 22-minute video that shows the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) massacre at the Speicher military base in Tikrit. This time the clip shows a 12-year-old boy killing people and throwing bodies into the Tigris River.
The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) released a video of their massacre at the Speicher army base in Tikrit, which left over 1,700 young Shi’ite cadets dead.
Contents: Fistfight breaks out at Yemen peace talks in Geneva; Report: Iran’s Supreme Leader has fired Qassam Soleimani in Syria; Emergency Eurogroup summit called for Monday to deal with likely Greece default
Hundreds of people displaced from the Iraqi city of Tikrit started to return home on Monday, three months after pro-government forces recaptured former president Saddam Hussein’s hometown from Islamic State militants.
Iranian-backed militias consisting of Shia Muslims have released a video showing an alleged Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) member alive being burnt alive in Iraq, reminiscent of a similar video in which ISIS jihadists burnt alive a Jordanian pilot. The terrorist group members identify as Sunni Muslims, who consider Shia Muslims heretics.
Contents: ISIS stokes sectarian Sunni-Shia clashes across the Mideast and Asia; Iraq’s government changes name of military operation to recapture Ramadi; Sunni Arabs are being forced to choose between ISIS and Shias
Contents: US administration’s strategy in Iraq continues to fail; Obama administration’s rhetoric changes dramatically on Sunday; Some reports suggest intentional loss of Ramadi by Iraq’s government
The European Union on Monday approved a multi-phase military operation to defeat human smugglers who are trafficking migrants from Libya to Europe. Smugglers have been charging migrants thousands of dollars each to make the trip, and there’s no guarantee of reaching Europe or even of surviving.
This victory will permit ISIS to threaten Baiji, Iraq’s largest oil refinery, as well as the villages in the suburbs around Baghdad, and Baghdad itself. Furthermore, weapons stores and other assets in Ramadi were not destroyed and are available to ISIS.
Iraqi forensic teams have begun the grim work of exhuming mass graves around the formerly ISIS-held city of Tikrit and taking account of the victims. What they have found tells a mind-shattering tale of horror.
Saudi Arabia, with US help, leads Arab nations to strike Houthis in Yemen; Iran threatens retaliation against Saudi Arabia for Yemen strikes; Shia militias sidelined for Iraq’s assault on Tikrit, with US help
Two weeks ago, the seemingly effective Iraqi operation to retake the city of Tikrit from ISIS ground to an abrupt halt, the “final push” delayed for an indefinite period out of concerns over collateral damage, according to Iraqi officials. It was widely speculated the more pertinent problem was that Islamic State forces proved to be much harder to dislodge than anyone wanted to admit, so time was needed to bring up reinforcements and prepare the battlespace.
US joins Iran and Iraq in fighting ISIS in Tikrit; Saudi Arabia begins airstrikes against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen; Obama administration continues to hail Yemen as a model
Iraq’s battle for Tikrit reaches a standstill, humiliating Iran; Disorganization plagues Iraq’s soldiers assaulting Tikrit; Correction to yesterday’s report on France’s elections; Greece’s Tsipras visits Germany’s Merkel and demands reparations
The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) is in the process transforming their self-proclaimed Iraqi capital Mosul into a moated city by digging trenches and constructing other forms of fortifications around it.
Today, the Iraq government issued a surprising statement that they were suspending the battle for Tikrit, ostensibly because they’re worried about collateral damage to the city and civilian casualties.
Lebanese terror group Hezbollah, at the behest of Iran, is expected to send around 800 of its elite militants to fight alongside Iraqi forces and Shiite militias to retake Mosul from the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), reports the London-based al-Araby al-Jadeed newspaper.
A notorious Iranian commander, who has reportedly been leading the fight to retake the Iraqi city of Tikrit from the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), said in a video that Iraq needs expert jihadists.
The latest communique from the Islamic State, alleged to contain the voice of spokesman Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, specifically mentioned attacks on Paris would come before the conquest of Rome.
Fears grow of Shia revenge killings in Iraq; Russia plans military development, including nuclear weapons, in Crimea
A video recently surfaced that shows Iraqi soldiers executing a small child at close range in Tikrit in Anbar province, where the army launched an offensive against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL). The Shiite soldiers accused the 9-year-old boy of fighting with the terrorist group.
Londoner takes amazing picture of weasel on flying woodpecker’s back; Failure of Austrian bank portends major new round of euro crisis; Iran Revolutionary Guards commander leads Iraq’s attack on Tikrit
Why did ISIS release 19 Assyrian Christian hostages?; Iran aids Iraq’s army in attack to recapture Tikrit from ISIS